In several cases, David Mason, 57, of Bolton, Greater Manchester, pretended children and elderly people were in need of desperate attention, Bolton Crown Court heard.

Police even broke into the house of a person who Mason claimed was suffering a heart attack, only to find the homeowner knew nothing about the call.

Mason, of Yates Street, Tonge Moor, plagued Greater Manchester Police and Greater Ambulance Service with 54 hoax calls between January 2006 and April last year.

All the bogus incidents reported were said to have taken place near his home.

He pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to 13 counts of causing a public nuisance.

A search of his home revealed mobile phones with numbers that proved Mason had made the hoax calls and also a diary which included matching telephone numbers.

The court was told Mason had a string of previous convictions for similar offences over the last 40 years, including a bomb hoax and impersonating a police officer.

Speaking after the hearing, PC Ian Deary of Bolton Police, said: "Mason has been a menace to both the emergency services and the local community, whose lives he put at risk.

"I hope this serves as a warning to anyone who thinks making prank calls to the emergency services is funny. It is no laughing matter."