A LOVER of bird-keeping is searching for the next Billy Casper as he hopes to promote the advantages of the hobby to a younger generation.

Malcolm Ford has been involved in organising the National Pigeon Association’s championship show at the Metrodome tomorrow and has been involved with the hobby for around 60 years.

Getting his first pigeon at only eight years old, the 69-year-old has spent his life with birds and raised his children around them.

“I wasn’t very good at first,” he told the Chronicle.

“But it’s all about that idea of progressing - by the time I was 13 and doing the Duke of Edinburgh I’d become pretty competent.

“It was also a great thing for me and my step day, I remember building hatches together and thinking he was amazing - it helped build our relationship.

“I love the film Kes, it resonated with me a lot - there’s that idea of being someone who isn’t the strongest finding something that makes them important and opens new doors.

“My children were very interested in the birds growing up.

“My daughter, Aiden, has got a PHD and is working on children’s brain development now, but says it’s the birds that originally helped her get into science.”

Malcolm - who lives in East Yorkshire - fears the community around his favourite pass time is at risk of ‘dying off’ if younger generations don’t develop an interest, and is hoping the event tomorrow will help reignite that.

He added: “You’ll see some spectacular bird breeds and probably leave thinking you never knew birds could look that way.

“We get to know lots about the wonderful varieties in dog breeds, but people are unaware of how different birds can be.

“There’ll be over 2,000 birds on show that day, it’s just spectacular.”