A RECLUSIVE scientist who shunned contact with people left £1 million to charity.

John Bateman, a ­physicist, passed away last year aged 90, leaving behind a substantial fortune in stocks and shares.

He lived alone in a council flat in East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, and never gave any hints of his £1,120,928 wealth.

He instructed £10,000 should be given to Help the Aged, with the rest of his estate divided between Oxfam, Amnesty International and Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland.

Andrew Barton, fund­raising director for Oxfam, said: "This is a very welcome and generous donation that will lift the lives of some of the world's most vulnerable people."

Chief executive of Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland, David Clark said: "We are so grateful for this very generous legacy, which will be used throughout Scotland."