The hostage-takers were protesting against sacking of their colleagues

A British oil worker held hostage by his Nigerian colleagues on an offshore rig has finally been released.

Mark Richards, of Portsmouth, Hampshire, was among the second batch of freed captives brought from the offshore rigs to mainland Nigeria on Saturday.

He was taken hostage after strikers seized four rigs on 19 April to protest against the sacking of five of their colleagues.

Mr Richards said: "It was tense at the start, but the last few days weren't bad. There was some intimidation."

"Life threatened"

He was brought ashore on one of two ferries carrying around 40 hostages which docked in the Nigerian city of Port Harcourt on Saturday evening.

Most of the 167 hostages, including 35 Britons, are expected to return with their 100 captors to the Nigerian mainland over the next 24 hours.

The 13-day strike which saw the workers being taken hostage was called off after talks between the rigs' owners, US oil company Transocean, and Nigerian unions.

Another freed oil worker Paul Baker, from Devon, told reporters in Port Harcourt that his life had been threatened while held captive.

Mr Baker was among a group of seven hostages to be freed, the others being mainly Nigerians.