The force remains strong for a West Malling film-maker, who has recalled his memories working on a previous Star Wars film as The Force Awakens hits cinemas.

Derek Boyes had just graduated from Northumbria University and was living in Newcastle when a friend offered him the chance to work on Star Wars: The Phantom Menace.

The media production student was 25 when he started work on set at the Leavesden Studios, Hertfordshire, as an office runner in 1997.

Mr Boyes, who now lives in King Street, West Malling, said: “A friend who graduated two years before me knew I was keen to get some work on set. She told me to get myself a mobile phone and be ready to take on whatever was thrown my way.

“I got a call a few days later asking me to come to London for an interview for the role of a runner. I ended up doing filing in the production office.

"At first it was just a temporary job, but I was then offered a role in another department and ended up working on the film for almost a year.”

He was also allowed on set to stand in for the stars during rehearsals and was called upon to appear in re-shoots where only the back or side of a character could be seen.

He was allowed to keep the reel of film from his time dressed as Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Now 43, Mr Boyes went on to work in the stills and press department and spent hours on set taking pictures which are still used in magazines and books.

He added: “They were long days on set. We would start at 8am and not finish until at least 8pm.”

Thousands of Star Wars fans are heading to the cinema this weekend, while experts predict The Force Awakens will smash box office records. The film was released on Thursday.

More than one million tickets have been sold across the UK.

Odeon, the UK’s largest chain, has reported selling 500,000 pre-sale tickets nationwide.