Tony Hugnell is presented Pride of Britain Award by his heroes Ant and Dec

An inspirational six-year-old boy from Kings Hill, Kent, who raised more than £1.2 million for the children's hospital which saved his life as a baby has been awarded a Pride of Britain Award by his heroes Ant and Dec.

Tony Hudgell thought he was on a day trip to London's famous toy store Hamley's when two life-size nutcrackers came marching toward him only to remove their heads and reveal they were Tony's favourite celebrities Ant and Dec.

Ant and Dec then presented Tony with a Pride of Britain Good Morning Britain Young Fundraiser Award.

'He was over the moon' when Tony met Ant and Dec

Tony’s mum Julie Hudgell told BBC Breakfast: “I had to keep it quiet for a while, he had absolutely no idea.

“He was over the moon,” when meeting Ant and Dec. “He absolutely idolises them. It was really, really special. His face just totally lit up and had a good chat with them.”

Tony’s parents, Paula and Mark, expected him to raise £500 when the double-amputee decided to walk with the aid of crutches every day in June until he reached 10km.

However, with the whole country behind him, he has raised over £1,500,000 for the Evelina London Children's Hospital who has looked after him since he was just five weeks old.

His challenge in aid of the hospital was inspired by Sir Captain Tom Moore who raised more than £27 million for NHS Charities Together by walking 100 laps of his garden in Bedfordshire.

Tony Hudgell was never expected to survive the horrific injuries inflicted on him as a baby by his biological parents.

His first weeks of life were a battle for survival because of abuse he endured from his birth parents which caused him to suffer multiple fractures and multiple organ failure that left him fighting for his life at 41 days old.

A judge described him as being "seconds away from death" when he was seen by a doctor as a five-week-old baby. His birth parents Jody Simpson and Anthony Smith went to prison for 10 years in 2018 for the abuse he suffered.

Once Tony was discharged from hospital at four months old, he was put into the foster care of Paula and Mark Hudgell, who later adopted him.

Tony was fitted with his first pair of artificial legs earlier this year and only began walking on them at the start of June.

Tony’s efforts led to Prime Minister Boris Johnson awarding him with the Prime Minister’s Points of Light award and a letter of congratulations.

The Pride of Britain Awards air on ITV at 9 pm on Sunday 1 November.