Jason Donovan rushes to save neighbour from house fire in his underwear

Jason Donovan dashed to help put out a fire at his neighbours’ house in the middle of the night – dressed in only his underwear.

A photograph has just emerged of the 51-year-old former Neighbours star at 4am in Notting Hill, west London, last month as he ran into the building with a fire extinguisher.

Donovan joked on Twitter that it was a “good reason to always wear PJs to bed (in case of emergencies) but much more importantly to have fire extinguishers at hand in the home”.

Read more: Jason Donovan turned to drugs because he wanted to 'be cool'

The London Fire Brigade was called at 4.09am on Sunday 22 September to a fire in Notting Hill, and the blaze was under control by 4.28am. Watch Manager Thomas Wolfe said: “The fire was located in the side passage next to a house and when we arrived a gentleman was tackling the fire using a fire extinguisher. We took over from him and quickly dealt with the blaze.

“It soon transpired that it was Jason Donovan who noticed the fire from his property over the road. The fire is believed to have been caused by a fault in electrical cabling.”

He added: “He looks good for his age. As one of the firefighters said to the resident, ‘everyone needs good neighbours’”.

The singer and actor later told SunOnline: "Thank God everyone is safe. I praise the emergency services who turned up quickly and I hope anyone in my position would do the same.

Read more: Jason Donovan returning to stage

"I just acted as anyone else would have acted at the time."

This is not the first time the Especially For You singer has played the hero for real.

In May this year the Australian star was out running near his home when he stopped to help a woman who had collapsed on the pavement. He waited with her until paramedics arrived.

Donovan – who shot to fame opposite Kylie Minogue in Aussie soap Neighbours in the 1980s – has just announced he is embarking on a new tour next year.