He produces beers with names like Collie Wobbles at his micro-brewery, attached to his traditional Lakeland pub The Watermill, in the village of Ings, near Windermere.

Brian's Watermill Brewery was founded in 2006, using brewing equipment imported from the US. It is one of a growing number of successful micro-breweries operating in the region.

The Watermill's Collie Wobbles is an award winning beer and the pub even has its own beer festival.

Brian, whose brewery employs two people, said: "Brewing is always something I've wanted to do and I'm very pleased with the way the business is going."

His vision of expanding The Watermill's brewery to increase its customer base has been developed through work carried out by the Lancaster Product Development Unit (LPDU) at Lancaster University.

It is one of the university's business support initiatives, which have helped create 600 jobs in two years.

"The work by the university has shown me there is the potential for bigger premises, if that's the route I want to take, " said Brian.