Michael Seery
He had been looking forward to an afternoon of playing cards, but instead partially-sighted pensioner Michael Seery ended up being stabbed after tackling a knife-wielding robber. Michael, 69, was the only customer at his local betting shop. He was waiting for friends so they could begin their regular game of cribbage when a man in a crash helmet barged in, waving a kitchen knife.
Smashing the windows at the front desk, he ordered the two terrified female cashiers to hand over their takings. Michael rarely left the house due to long-term ill health but, as an ex-policeman and former soldier, it wasn't in his nature to stand by and do nothing.
Picking up a chair, he threw it at the robber, who then turned on him. As he tussled with the enraged man, he was slashed in the thigh. The struggle lasted three minutes, until Michael managed to pin the man down, but he soon broke free, stabbing Michael in the back.
But, refusing to be beaten, Michael chased the thug to the doorway, kicked him to the floor and dislodged his crash helmet. Luckily, the cashiers, who had escaped from the shop during the fracas, recognised him as an earlier customer.
After the robber had escaped, Michael, who is married to Valerie, 67, and has three children and two grandchildren, helped put the shop back in order by neatly rearranging the chairs.
Once police arrived, he was taken to hospital for treatment. Days later he developed complications and underwent surgery on the stab wound in his thigh. The robber was later arrested and sentenced to nine years.
Talking of his heroics, Michael, who was born in Dublin but has lived in Farnborough, Hampshire, for over 50 years, says, "It was the screams of the cashiers that set me off. "I was the only person in there and I thought, ‘It isn't right. That can't be allowed to happen'. So I did what I had to do.
"It was instinctive but, if the circumstances were the same, I would do it again tomorrow. Despite my injuries, I have no regrets. "My granddaughters Tiffany, 17, and Ella, five, think their grandad is a hero, but I really don't think I'm all that brave."
DC Ian Cullen, of the local Aldershot police, the force which dealt with the case, says, "I shook Michael's hand because I wanted to shake the hand of one of the bravest men I've ever met – one who put his own safety after that of everyone else. "Without doubt, Michael's actions assisted the police in convicting the offender."