The omen (2006)

It is not easy to imagine Guy Willoughby on his hands and knees scouring the streets of Kabul for the deadly remnants of cluster bombs. But in May 1988 this is exactly what the then 28-year-old started doing.

Now the founder of the Halo Trust has won the Robert Burns Humanitarian Award for his work clearing the world of the deadly debris of war.

At a ceremony in Ayr last night to mark the start of the 2009 Burns an' a' that!

Festival, the former Coldstream Guard was named ahead of fellow nominees Phil Hughes, founder of the Dumfries and Galloway Aid Convoy, and Shabana Azmi, a Bollywood actress turned political activist.

In an interview with the Observer, Willoughby said he was delighted to win the award on behalf of the many hundreds of charity staff who live in conflict and post-conflict countries and face daily danger, disease, discomfort and often isolation for very little financial reward or recognition.

"These people are often wo