Dave Prowse, who starred as the Green Cross Code Man in TV road safety adverts, has been reunited with his robot after its restoration by a Devizes expert.

Mr Prowse was the crossings superhero in the 1970s and 1980s and, when he finished he was given the robot, called Droid, that he had worked alongside.

It remained in his shed for more than 30 years, until he took it to a show at Corsham School this year and accepted an offer by the organiser, Charity Sci-Fi, to restore it.

On Monday, Mr Prowse saw Droid fully functioning outside Corsham Town Hall.

He said: “What they have done with Droid is fantastic. Droid languished in the shed at the bottom of my garden for 30 years. It was not working at all and they have renovated it completely.

“I go to sci-fi conventions almost every weekend, so Droid will accompany me and people can have their photo taken with it.”

Mark Enright, 48, of Devizes, a member of Charity Sci-Fi, restored Droid over three months and said it was the most challenging robot he had rebuilt.

The ICT teacher at the John Bentley School, Calne, added: “Droid was very battered. All the original electronics were shot, so I had to redesign the electronics system.

"It was very important, wherever possible, to keep as many of the Droid’s original parts as I could, including the pram wheels at the front and the castors at the back.

“I feel very proud to be able to bring such an '80s iconic robot back to life and it will be great to know that the 1982 Green Cross Code Droid will be used again on tour at a number of events and will be seen driving around by a whole new generation of children.”

Ady Davies, founder and chairman of Charity Sc-Fi, said: “Mark is an absolute genius. It’s brilliant to see Droid working again.

“It gives us a nice feeling that there is a piece of history we have had a hand in keeping going. It’s nice to do something that will make a difference. If it stops one child being run over, it’s well worth all the work.”

Mr Prowse, who lives in Croydon but is originally from Bristol, also starred as Darth Vader in the Star Wars films.

He said he was proud to play the Green Cross Code Man and be part of a campaign to improve road safety for children.

He said: “When they asked me to be involved, the road accident figures in Great Britain were astronomical. It started off with me going round to schools and giving talks. It became almost like a vocation.”