Autism and me: Leyland teenager Charlie Michael Baker donates £200,000 to charity on the back of his astonishing book success with Vanessa Feltz, Christine McGuinness and Charlotte Crosby among his fans

A Leyland teenager who was diagnosed with autism at the age of six and was the subject of relentless bullying throughout his school years has donated a staggering £200,000 to charity from the proceeds of the books he’s written on his experiences with ASD – autism spectrum disorder.

Not only that, Charlie Michael Baker, has amassed 600,000 followers on Instagram at the age of just 16 and has plans to forge a career in television with his first sights set on making a documentary on the subject of autism.

As well as writing three books on autism, Charlie has also written a thriller and is working on a fifth book, all self published and self promoted through his website charliembaker.com

Now, says Charlie, his former bullies treat him completely differently.

"I was bullied badly for being different than the other children all through school. I suppose because I was different, people didn’t know how to deal with it. It wasn’t until I found my voice through writing that people began to treat me differently.”

‘We have sold thousands of books worldwide’

In March this year Charlie published his first book Charlie Baker: Autism and Me, which was an instant hit on Amazon Kindle and Apple Books and through his website.

Charlie, who now has his own manager, said: “We have sold thousands of books worldwide and we have donated hundreds of thousands of pounds to charity. We have even reached a few famous faces.

“ITV’s Vanessa Feltz reached out wishing me luck, Christine McGuinness reached out, and I have sent one of our books to Charlotte Crosby’s mum Letitia and have even had an Australian cricket player buy my book!"

The term ‘the world is your oyster’ couldn’t be more apt for Charlie who is continuing his studies, writing another book and thinking about a future in television. A future in which he sees himself making a change and breaking down the stigma surrounding autism.

Charlie said: “I wanted to be a flight attendant but I’m too tall apparently, but I would love to spread awareness on autism and hope my books continue to help people. I spend most of my time talking to people through Instagram. People reach out to me and I’m happy to be there for them.”

If you’re looking for an incredible success story, look no further than Charlie Michael Baker.