Reporter Phillip Norton decided to stop writing the news - and deliver it instead.

A shortage of newspaper boys and girls in part of the Grimsby Telegraph's circulation area left one newsagent having to deliver the latest headlines to residents himself.

So Phillip went out and about to draw attention to his plight as part of a recruitment drive.

He said: "A shortage of delivery staff has meant Ray Sandall, owner of the Grimsby Telegraph News Shop in North Sea Lane, is having to complete two of his 11 rounds by himself on a nightly basis."

So in a bid to lead youngsters to consider a delivery round, Phillip decided to give it a go himself and then write about his experience in the Telegraph.

He was given the task of delivering the newspaper to 45 homes around Humberston, and, dressed in his smart work suit and armed with a satchel full of papers, he set off on his 'round'.

He said: "It's not as if I have never delivered the newspaper before. Back in the Nineties, before I even thought about becoming a journalist, one of my friends was a paper boy with my local newsagent.

"On a number of occasions, I covered his round when he was on holiday.

"I received a few odd looks as I walked around in my suit, looking slightly over dressed for a paper boy. But nevertheless, I walked on with pride!

"It was a beautiful, crisp evening. The sun was beginning to set as I negotiated just a few of the obstacles thrown at me - cars reversing out of drives, car doors suddenly being opened in front of me, and countless barking dogs determined to scare me.

"I took pleasure in simply smiling back at them as they snarled at me through windows."

The round took him along several roads before he finally returned back to the shop with his empty bag just over an hour later.

He said: "I entered the newsagents to be greeted with joking and laughter about the length of the round.

"It is one of the shop's longest, and is usually completed on a bike or by car.

"They were quite impressed by the relatively quick time I had completed my task."

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