A PENSIONER who was paying for his own life-saving heart bypass has died three weeks before the operation was due.

Robert Forbes died at Worcester's Ronkswood Hospital last night following a heart attack at home.

Mr Forbes and his family had collected £14,000 of their own money to fund a private operation after being told he would be six to eight months on an NHS waiting list for the triple heart bypass.

Son-in-law Alan Kaplan, who with wife Christine provided half the money for the operation, today paid tribute to the 67-year-old.

"He was such a lovely man. Everyone he knew loved him because he was so happy and jolly," said Mr Kaplan, of Crowle.

"What really makes us angry is a surgeon can spend up to 20 per cent of his time working privately, which makes the NHS waiting lists longer.

"It is not the surgeons' fault, it's the Government's for allowing them to work privately."

Mr Forbes' wife and childhood sweetheart, Lily, died seven years ago of a heart attack while on holiday in Cyprus.

He met his second wife, Judith, through a personal ad and they married on New Year's Day 2000 at St Andrew's Hotel, Droitwich.

Mr Forbes, of Hawford Close, Droitwich had two heart attacks at the age of 32, but had been healthy until he was diagnosed with angina last year.

He was told by doctors at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham, that he needed the triple bypass in October, but was warned he faced a long wait.

Mr Forbes and his family then decided to go privately and had been told a slot was available at The Priory Hospital, Birmingham, on Sunday, February 3, with the same surgeon.

Claire Austin, spokeswoman for the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, said: "We offer our condolences to Mr Forbes family at such a sad time.

"He was only seen by one of our surgeons last Monday as an urgent case, and he's deeply shocked by the news."