44-stone Ritchie pleads for new home

A 44-stone housebound man, who can no longer climb the stairs in his tiny flat, has made an emotional appeal for a new home.

Morbidly obese Ritchie Doyle, 44, who rents a two-bedroom apartment in Bantry, Co Cork, has ulcerated legs and relies on an oxygen machine to help him breathe.

In receipt of disability allowance and rent supplement, he has been on Cork County Council’s local authority housing waiting list for 18 months but has been told there is no suitable accommodation for him.