37 stone man forced to buy two plane seats - in different rows

A 37-stone man was forced to buy two plane seats because of his size - only to find one was on row 17 and the other on row 19.

Les Price, 43, of Brynithel near Newport, South Wales, had to pay extra for two seats for a return flight to Ireland as airline policy rules anyone over 20 stone has to book extra space.

He'd already felt humiliated when, on the outgoing flight, he'd found his two seats were on the same row, but one was an aisle seat and the other a window seat.

But on his return flight, he found his booked seats weren't even on the same row.

According to the Mirror and the Daily Telegraph, he said: "When I got to the airport I had to explain to all the staff why I had two tickets, they didn't have a clue.

"When I finally got on the plane one seat was an aisle seat and the other was by the window, in a three-seat row.

"On the way back from Ireland one seat was in row 17 and the other in row 19!"

Mr Price says he put on a stone a year from the age of about 10. And, even when he was working 80 hours a week and playing rugby he put on weight.

Les said he started piling on more pounds after he injured his back in an accident at work.

He then started "comfort-eating" after his wife, Zeruiah, died of cancer in 2009.

According to the Daily Mail, he said: "I fell into a depression. I couldn't be bothered to cook, would eat takeaways and want to treat my step-daughter Charlie because her mother had died."

He is now trying to turn his life around and is cutting down on his calories and attending an NHS weight management clinic. He said: "I want to be out there working.

"I know a lot of people work the benefits system – but I want to be out there, not stuck at home."

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