IT'S been decided . . . Swindon's fittest fella has been named as 22-year-old bar manager John Edmonds of Old Town.

After nearly 40 men were nominated for the title by loving friends and relatives - and, in some cases, themselves! - the short-list was whittled down to five by on-line voting.

More than 1,600 votes were received for the Swindon hunks in our Fit Fellas competition, and they ranged in age from teenagers to pensioner Max Moore, 75, who came third in Mr Britain 1953.

The finalists were then invited to appear before a judging panel, where they were assessed for personality as well as looks.

John, who works at The Spot bar in Godwin Court was nominated by his staff, many of whom turned up with posters and banners to support him at the judging this week.

He was the runaway winner in the competition, organised by the Adver in conjunction with the Swindon Marriott hotel.

John scored top marks with all the judges, who ranked the contestants from five (the highest) to one. He got a perfect score of 30 points.

"He had the proper balance of being attractive on the inside as well as the outside,'' said radio presenter Roo Green, of GWR's morning show.

The judges thought John - who received the highest number of online votes (444) - might be a bit cocky, partly because he turned up with a big gang of supporters.

"Do you always travel with an entourage?'' asked Roo. But as the questioning progressed, it soon became clear that John was a thoroughly nice guy.

James Pierce, the hotel's leisure operations manager, and the token man on the panel, agreed: "He was a down-to-earth bloke - not too cocky, and he looked like he could take a bit of stick.'' John himself, who keeps fit by playing football for Malmesbury Victoria FC in the Hellenic League Division 1, rated his personality as his best feature. "To have as much support as he did, you have to have alot of charisma,'' said Roo.

And as Swindon mayoress Sue Barnes pointed out: "To get into the final five with the picture that went in the Adver, he must be popular!'' John won a three month membership to the leisure club at the Marriott Hotel, Pipers Way, Swindon, a bottle of champagne and a month's membership for the person who nominated him.