A SAUCY annual charity calendar from a Trowbridge photographer has been drawing global attention for its latest instalment which is now on sale to the public.

David Betteridge first published the Foxy Hunters calendar in 2010 after his friend Maria Badder was seriously injured during a team chase event at Newbury and was airlifted to hospital.

Since being set up, the calendars, which feature horse riders in risqué poses, have raised just over £107,000 for Wiltshire Air Ambulance and the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance, which transported Mrs Badder to John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford for treatment.

The calendar, which now has more than 216,000 followers on its Facebook page, has already sold around 45,000 copies with some orders being placed from people in Canada, Australia and America.

“When you have a Facebook following of 216,000, the attention on the calendar gets around but when I started, I was only going to do just the one calendar,” Mr Betteridge said.

“When the last one come out, I thought I would see how it goes and I had a situation where it became so popular that a lot of places sold out of it.

“It has become a bit of a collector’s item and I even get enquiries from people about how they can get earlier copies of the calendar.”

Mr Betteridge said since the calendar has been released he has had numerous calls from media outlets across the globe asking him what inspired the curation of the calendar – attention which he never expected to get.

“It never ceases to amaze me how much interest and support the calendars have got because I do not know how long it will go on but as long as my enthusiasm keeps going then it will continue,” he added.

“In January and February when we give out the cheques, that is when I get the inspiration and buzz to do it again. I don’t get anything through it personally because all the money is donated to the charity but it is the support which makes me want to do it again.”

Mr Betteridge is already planning the 2017 calendar.

For more information about the Foxy Hunters Calendars, visit www.foxyhunters.co.uk