A BRAVE Blackpool bar manager confronted a thief trying to get away with thousands of pounds in pub takings on Saturday night (August 1).

Martin Kelly, 23, heard the upstairs office door being kicked in at O'Neills Irish Bar in Talbot Road about 11.10pm.

He ran to see a man emerging with handfuls of banknotes snatched from the unlocked safe.

"I grabbed him and he dropped most of the money, but he managed to wriggle out of his T-shirt and jumper and escaped by jumping down off the flat roof," said Mr Kelly.

"We chased him but he jumped into a car and got away, although witnesses took the registration number."

The modest hero said he only wanted to keep the man away from his pregnant girlfriend, who was behind him at the time.

The escape car, a silver Vauxhall Cavalier N360 PPE, had been parked near Henry's Wine Bar, Queen Street, for ten minutes.

It was driven by a fair-haired male in his early 20s, with a petite dark-haired girl passenger who had earlier asked passers-by for cigarettes.

Security at O'Neills has been upgraded since the incident, said Mr Kelly. "It was just a glitch in security that night that allowed him to force his way in," he said.

Anyone who can help should contact Blackpool CID on 01253 293933.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.