Robert Charles Albon claims to have fathered more than 180 children in several countries after advertising his sperm donation services under the name Joe Donor.

Jonathan Furness KC, sitting as a deputy high court judge, took the rare step of naming him as a parent in the family court as a warning to other women considering buying sperm from him.

In a written judgment he said it was in the public interest for Albon to be named, so “vulnerable women who are interested in such services should fully understand the risks of becoming involved with him”.

Albon, an American who lives in the north-east of England, took a same-sex couple to court demanding parental rights, including being named on the birth certificate of the child he had fathered with one of the women.