A D-Day veteran is holding an exhibition of his art work in north Dorset after taking up painting again having had his cataracts done.

Peter Gardner, who took part in the Allied invasion of Normandy and Operation Market Garden, became an art teacher after the Second World War.

But the 97-year-old stopped painting 10 years ago due to a combination of the death of his wife Pat and his failing eyesight.

He rekindled his passion after becoming friends with a care worker who is an aspiring artist.

And after having two cataracts removed from his eyes he was able to see clearly and paint as before, with impressive results.

The 15 paintings were all produced by Peter within the last 12 months and they will be exhibited at an art gallery in Shaftesbury.

Peter's artwork, that sells for up to £400, includes scenes of London, where he grew up, idyllic Dorset landscapes and a fox hunt.

He said: "I became an art teacher after the war until my retirement in 1979.

"I moved from London to to Shaftesbury in 1983. In the past year, I had two cataracts removed and I can now continue painting as before.

"I enjoy it and it comes naturally to me.

"Most of my work is of London scenes with some still life and a few paintings of religious subjects.

"I hope to show examples of all these genres in the exhibition."

Peter is putting on a joint exhibition with amateur artist Charlotte Dooley, 47, who befriended him at an Age Concern meeting in 2015.

She said: "When his wife Pat died about 10 years ago he completely lost the will to paint for a number of years but he has started painting again.

"Peter's paintings are fantastic and you would not believe he is 97 years old."

Peter began painting as a 13-year-old but was not able to carry out his passion during his war-time service.

He enlisted with the Royal Electrical Mechanical Engineers in 1942 at the age of 22 and was sent to Derby to train as a wireless mechanic.

He was engaged in operations in Northern France and in Belgium where he assisted with the liberation of Brussels in September 1944.

Subsequently, he took part in the Battle of Nijmegen in Holland before returning to England in October of that year.

Following the conflict, he received a grant to train to be an art teacher in London's East End, a job he carried out until his retirement 40 years ago.

Last year he was awarded a Legion D'Honneur, France's highest order of military merit, for helping to liberate France from the Nazis.

The exhibition takes place at Shaftesbury Arts Centre from March 6-12.