A crypt which contains a 'huge coffin' belonging to Oldham's gentle 'giant' has been well documented by urban explorers and living family members, some 200 years after he died.

The 'Oldham giant', Joseph Scholes, was said to be around 6ft 7in tall and weigh 37 stone when he died at age 56 in 1814.

Joseph has been laid to rest in the crypts of Oldham Parish Church since 1830, but his fascinating legacy lives on.

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Not only have many urban explorers delved into the depths of his final resting place, as the church itself dates back to the 1200s, but his living family have also written a book about their heroic ancestor.

The book, written by Thomas Scholes-Fogg, the sixth great-grandson of Joseph, uncovers the 'giant' lived a colourful life in Oldham, working as a governor of Oldham workhouse, a soldier and the town crier.

It is even alleged he prevented the assassination of a priest.

Known as the 'gentle giant' as well as 'King Dody' and 'Big Dody', Joseph became a local hero for speaking up for workhouse apprentices, who were bullied and starved by weavers.

Oldham Council also paid homage to the fascinating figure during its grand reopening of the Old Town Hall back in 2016.

Aptly named 'On the Shoulders of Giants', the production followed Joseph, a six-metre tall puppet, who 'awoke' from his crypt to usher in the new chapter for the town.

Local historians and urban explorers, including Sarah's UK Graveyard, have also paid their respects to the giant and the historical church in recent years.

In a tour of the vaults in the crypt, Sarah said she was "lucky" to be able to see the tombs - and when she came across Joseph's she said: "Oh my word - the giant of Oldham."

The explorer from Oldham, who documents the history of cemeteries and graves on her YouTube channel, said: "I think his coffin is huge compared to the others, it's amazing."

Another urban explorer also visited the site where they said the church is home to some "serious history".

His footage shows the site of several of the 200 tombs and vaults, where lead coffins are stacked and sealed shut behind wrought iron gates.

The explorer said only Parliament can grant entry permission behind the gates which cost £3,000 a piece, meaning those buried in each of the rooms "had to be wealthy".

He continued: "It's so eerie, surrounded by so much death.

"Check this floor - the original bedrock floor from 1210. You don't get any more period than that.

"All this sandstone - that is the original church foundations and the wall from 1210. 

"It shows you, they made things proper back in the day.

"The history - wow."

Moving to Joseph's resting place, his camera pans to a huge coffin surrounded by three other, significantly smaller coffins.

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The explorer continued: "The reason these coffins are lead back in the day was because they were superstitious about diseases and things so, you know, they put them in a lead coffin to kind of seal it basically.

"So if you pierce a lead coffin, it would pop and implode, because it's pressure-sealed.

"They were scared of disease getting out because they had very little medicine."

Reacting to the exploration on social media, Oldhamers claim the giant was originally buried in the Church grounds when he died before moving into the crypt 16 years later in 1826.

A woman said: "Getting his coffin in that space must have taken a lot of effort.

"He must have been famous in Oldham.

"He lived a long life considering how large a man he was.

"His life story must be interesting."

Another said she had read the book, which is available at Oldham Parish Church, and found Joseph had been buried three times.

She said: "He was carried from his shop the first time by three teams of 12 people taking turns.

"They had to remove his shop windows to get him out."

Do you have a piece of history about Oldham or another story you'd like us to cover? Email me at Olivia.bridge@newsquest.co.uk or send me a message on Twitter @Livbridge.