REALITY TV star and Accrington Stanley fan Jesse McClure went on a 'ride-along' with Lancashire Police after his video of a dramatic car chase in Burnley went viral.

During a visit last April the star of hit show Storage Hunters on Dave filmed a 90-second video of a Vauxhall Zafira being boxed in by four police vehicles at the busy junction of Accrington Road and Rossendale Road.

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The video, view more than 700,000 times on social media, saw the driver of the Vauxhall Zafira being dragged from his car, restrained and arrested, with several officers and a police dog involved.

During his latest UK visit he was invited to accompany officers Dave France and Ryan McIntyre on a 'ride-along' as they patrolled the Daneshouse, Stoops Estate and Burnley Wood areas.

Mr McClure, who switched on Accrington's Christmas lights and promoted Accrington Market Online, said it was great to see what the police do and he has gained a lot of admiration for them.

He said: "These guys do a great job keeping the streets of East Lancashire safe every day and it was an awesome privilege to be invited along for the ride.

"I've seen first-hand how your law enforcers operate in an emergency situation and it's given me nothing but respect for these guys and the tough job they do."

After filming the arrest Mr McClure said it was something he would expect to see in his hometown of Los Angels but not on the streets of Burnley.

He also praised the police for the 'extremely professional' way they contained and arrested the car thief, who had a record of 115 previous offences and was later jailed for a year.

During the ride-along, the team and Mr McClure dealt with a drink-driver and a stolen car and intervened in a potential drug deal, as well as meeting law-abiding residents and signing a few autographs.

PC France said he and PC McIntyre had been happy to give Mr McClure a taste of their work.

He said: "Jesse chanced upon last year's incident and it's great that he's come back to see what policing is like here in the UK as opposed to the USA."

Ch Insp Paul Leigh said: "It was fantastic to see Jesse coming back to see and support the police.

"We welcome people who champion the work we do."