Keith MacDonald with children by eight women fakes death to avoid paying support to ninth baby on the way... and then claims: 'I get so much hassle'

As Britain's most feckless father, Keith MacDonald has done almost everything he can to escape responsibility for his eight children by eight women.

But just when many thought the jobless layabout could stoop no lower, he posed as a friend to announce his own death by text.

With a ninth child on the way, the binman's son was desperate to avoid paying out any more than the £5 a week he currently gives towards each of his other children.

He sent a text message to his pregnant former girlfriend Clare Bryant, 22, telling her: 'Keith is dead.'

Miss Bryant, who already has a one-year-old daughter by MacDonald, rang his mobile phone, but there was no answer. She then called the local hospitals and the police, but to no avail.

Two weeks passed before Miss Bryant found out that 25-year-old MacDonald was, in fact, alive and well. He sent her a message to apologise and told her that he wanted to 'get away from his life'.

Last night an unrepentant MacDonald admitted that he had pretended to be dead, saying: 'I get so much hassle from everybody.'

He then tried to blame Miss Bryant for starting the rumour. 'It all came from Clare, she started it off. I thought I may as well just go along with it.

MacDonald, who is paid £44 a week in income support and has never held down a permanent job, denies fathering all but one of his children on the grounds that they have different hair colour from him Read More