A maintenance engineer from Huddersfield has been hand-picked to star in an advertising campaign during the World Cup.

Stuart Pearce is among a number of tradespeople and DIYers starring in the latest Screwfix ad campaign.

As part of Screwfix’s sponsorship of the ITV’s World Cup coverage, the retailer found customers who share names with England’s footballing greats – throwing the spotlight light on the tradespeople who keep Britain going and “putting them front and centre as the true legends this summer.”

In the advert, Stuart Pearce, who lives at Lindley and works for Bradford-based food ingredients supplier Gordon Rhodes & Son, is shown hammering a nail on a workbench. He catches his thumb and lets out a primal howl.

And there’s a twist in the tale – for Stuart Pearce the footballer was a tradesman himself in the early 1980s when he spent four years as a part-time electrician while playing non-league football for Wealdstone.

Huddersfield’s Stuart said: “I’m honoured to be involved in the Screwfix ads and be part of such an iconic sporting event.

“When I first got the call to ask if I would be interested in taking part I thought, what a great idea. I’ve followed Stuart Pearce the footballer since his Nottingham Forest days and the whole experience has been so much fun.

“I feel like a local celebrity, my children have told all of their friends, too.”

Caroline Welsh, director of brand and marketing at Screwfix, said: “Football plays a huge part in a lot of our customers’ lives and what better way to bring the beautiful game to them than by putting them at the heart of our TV ads? They are the real legends to us.

“We had great fun searching and casting for this campaign and are sure it will raise a few smiles.”