The 'lovely little lad' whose venture stole Wythenshawe's heart

Most kids have wanted a pet at some point, but when David Matczuk decided he wanted a tortoise, he was determined to buy it himself.

Keen to raise his own money for the animal, the 11-year-old set up a stall near to his home selling drinks, crisps and sweets.

For five days the youngster had his table set up in Broadoak Road, Wythenshawe, selling items to passersby.

It was one of those, Kaitlan Pegg, who posted a photo of his stall to a local Facebook page, which is when the community really pulled together.

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"Young boy on Broadoak Road has a little tuck shop up, he’s saving for a tortoise," she explained. "If you go past him buy a little something off him."

Soon dozens of people were commenting to say they'd visited the stall to show their support and were full of praise for the 'lovely little lad' with impeccable manners.

"Whoever this little boy belongs to, he is a credit to you," said one customer. "What a lovely polite young lad."

"What a lovely young lad he is," said another. "My two girls have kindly gifted him a tortoise enclosure and a few bits that are no longer needed to get him started, his face was priceless. He was so grateful and shocked bless him. Very polite young lad, his parents you should be so proud."

David eventually lost track of how many customers turned up, but as well as earning around £500 for his venture, he was gifted a tortoise and everything he needs to give it a loving home.

"A man who saw the post about my stall came down and bought a few things and said he loved the idea. He then got me the bedding and a tortoise," said the youngster.

The Russian tortoise, which he's called Lucky and was