A family have begun exterminating garden waste after converting a dull compost bin into a fearsome Dalek.

Emma Irvine and her children Kerry, aged 10, and William, three, noticed the free bin closely resembled Doctor Who’s ultimate foe.

On a sunny afternoon they decided to make some timeless adjustments by adding yoghurt pots, jar lids and a plunger. The resulting alien is now equipped to exfoliate, exfoliate, exfoliate.

Mrs Irvine from the St Helier Estate, Sutton, said: “My son, in particular, really likes feeding the Dalek bin. It has made breaking down garden cuttings fun.

“I have put the photos on the Facebook site and we have had lots of comments from neighbours who can see it from their windows. They tell us to watch out at night because there is a Dalek outside.”