A 'vibrant and colourful' GP has hung up his stethoscope for the final time after 33 years at a market town's surgery.

Keith Harrison, 65, has retired from the Market Surgery in Aylsham. Patients and colleagues showed their gratitude to the senior partner at a party in his honour at Aylsham Town Hall.

Dr Harrison, from Eagle Lane, Erpingham, said: 'My most enjoyable memory is being completely happy at the surgery for the whole time. The people in Aylsham are fantastic.'

He added he thought the NHS was better than it was when he first trained at St Bartholomew's Hospital in London between 1968 to 1974.

'I decided I liked doing everything and the only way I could do that was to became a GP,' Dr Harrison added.

He spent a year as a trainee GP at Ramsbury in Wiltshire before moving to Aylsham. Dr Harrison said: 'In those days it was hard to get a job as a GP. There were 106 applicants for the post in Aylsham.'

Before he applied for the job he was close to moving to Nepal with his wife Dolly, a former nurse, to work for the Britain Nepal Medical Trust.

'I have never regretted coming to Aylsham,' Dr Harrison added.

When he first came to Aylsham the surgery was on the Market Place – where it had been since 1837 – but it moved to Norwich Road in 1994.

He said: 'I used to deliver babies and I ended up looking after the babies of the people I had delivered.'

Dr Harrison said despite there being a lot of change in the NHS there was no point in fighting it.

'Everyone at the surgery has always been forward looking and recognises there is good in every change. Change is inevitable,' he added.

His colleague of 20 years, Nazia Ahmed said Dr Harrison was a 'vibrant and colourful character who was dedicated to patients and medicine'.

Dr Harrison, who has three daughters, said he wanted to 'chill out' and was looking forward to walking in the Lake District, sailing off Morston and playing tennis.