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His wrinkled face and grey beard and hair blackened by soot, this drifter is known as Europe’s dirtiest man.

Ludvik Dolezal sleeps every night in a pile of hot ash, burning his few possessions to save him from the freezing cold.

He said: “I lie down with hot ash in my clothes and cover myself to keep warm.

"I look like hell. I had mattresses, but burnt everything. People help and bring old tyres to burn.

Ludvik is said to have a disorder, but his lifestyle saves him from the freezing cold of Novy Bydzov, in the Czech Republic.

He is paid £81 a month in benefits – but not all at once, in case he burns it.

And he gets through 20 cigarettes a day, vowing he’ll never stop smoking.