Businessman hid in shed from bailiffs for a year

A businessman hid in his shed from bailiffs for a year after his company collapsed. Steve Morris, 60, feared he would lose his semi-detached house after his engineering business folded owing £10,000. He retreated to his shed in the belief that debt collectors would leave him alone if they thought he no longer lived in his three-bedroom house.

He put a camp-bed, a TV and a microwave in the large shed at the foot of his 60ft long garden and slept underneath a worktop. The bachelor lived off ready meals and tins of beans. He occasionally crept into his home after dark to use the lavatory, wash and get extra food. He eventually confided his money troubles to his neighbor, Carmel Dean, after she spotted him hiding in the shed.

Mrs Dean, who is in her 60s, kept his secret for the next 10 months and brought him cooked meals on a regular basis - including Christmas dinner. Mr Morris' cover was finally blown when an eviction notice was served on his £180,000 house in Weymouth, Dorset, and a locksmith was called in. Mrs Dean intervened to explain Mr Morris's predicament and the 60-year-old former businessman has now moved back into his home and has set about paying off his outstanding debts.

Mr Morris, who turned his life around with the help of his local Citizens' Advice Bureau, said: "I was broke and reached rock bottom. I had given up hope and was living in my garden shed to avoid the creditors banging on the door. There was a mountain of letters two foot deep. You don't get any good letters when you are broke. You only get threats and demands. I was living in the shed for a year and my neighbor had not seen me for two months. I slept in there so that there would not be a light on in the house."