A 101-year-old paedophile who sexually abused children as young as four in his garden shed will die in prison after becoming the oldest criminal to be jailed in British legal history.

Ralph Clarke's life is almost certain to end behind bars after a judge handed him a 13-year term for the child sex attacks spanning nearly a decade.

The former lorry driver committed a catalogue of assaults against a boy and two young girls between 1974 and 1983. The attacks took place in the pensioner's "man cave" workshop and in the cab of his truck.

He bribed his victims to keep quiet with sweets and money, but they came forward after being enraged by Facebook posts celebrating his 100th birthday.

Clarke, of Erdington, Birmingham, was jailed on Monday following a two-week trial at Birmingham Crown Court, where he was found guilty of 21 historical sex offences.