A cabbie, who lost more than half his body weight, was shocked to find his most regular clients didn’t recognise him.

Nick Fichtmullercor, who runs his own taxi company, has been driving the same family to the airport for a holiday every year for more than a decade.

However, when the 39-year-old picked them up last month they asked where their usual driver was.

They were gobsmacked to discover Nick had lost 16st 13lbs after joining a Paddock Wood slimming group.

The stepfather-of-three said: “I didn’t realise how much I’d changed because I look at myself in the mirror every day, so when I saw myself through their eyes it was the first time I could really see my own transformation and it was a great feeling.”

Mr Fichtmuller, who previously weighed more than 33st, had been overweight for as long as he remembers and was badly teased at school. As he got older, his health began to suffer and he developed sleep apnoea. He was forced to use a machine to help him breath at night.

He added: “I struggled to fit behind the steering wheel and older customers would worry that I might have a heart attack when I carried their bags for them. The worst thing though was the way that my weight stopped me from doing things with my three step-children, like swimming and bike riding.”

Mr Fichtmuller, from Tunbridge Wells, joined Slimming World in Paddock Wood’s Maidstone Road after being inspired by his younger sister’s weight loss.

He added: “I was nervous about going into the group for the first time, but now I’d tell anyone who’s thinking about joining a group not to be afraid because everyone there is in the same boat.”

Now weighing 16st 2lbs, Mr Fichtmuller has already taken part in a triathlon and has sights on a marathon. He came 4th at Slimming World’s nationwide Greatest Loser 2015 Awards in London this month.