Not many people could recognise a Premiership footballer or TV celebrity from their teeth... but Simon Nocton could.

He regularly checks out the molars and incisors of famous faces at his central London clinic, and applies the latest techniques in cosmetic dentistry to make their smiles something to be proud of.

And now he is doing the same here in West Yorkshire, from his Ilkley-based practice, where he spends half the week.

"I have some very high profile clients," he says. "Television celebrities, actors, politicians, politicians' wives and some high profile sports personalities."

The latter includes five Premiership footballers, whose identities he is keeping close to his chest.

His aim, he says, is "to carry out good, careful dentistry to make smiles nice smiles".

He adds: "What most people in the public eye look for is to have a smile that looks completely natural, fresh and bright."

This is achieved in a variety of ways, with techniques including tooth whitening, applying veneer, changing fillings and implanting replacement teeth where they have been lost. He once carried out a "huge transformation" on a TV newsreader through whitening.

The increasingly popular procedure of replacing fillings can also have a dramatic effect.

"Simple things like this mean everything. Changing black amalgam fillings to white is quite straightforward yet the change in a person's appearance can be dramatic. It can look as though the individual has never had any dentistry carried out at all."

The same can be said of whitening procedures. The knock on-effect, says Simon, is a boost to confidence.

"It is phenomenal the change that comes over some people. People who have been shy or embarrassed come out of themselves. If you think your teeth do not look right it can have a massive effect on your self-confidence."

Implant dentistry is offered to people who lose one or a number of teeth. Replacements are fixed to a base set in the gum or jaw.

Simon, 41, who lives in the South East but has family in Ilkley and Skipton, regularly works with clients who have none of their own teeth. For many people this dates from the 1950s, when patients often had their teeth removed to avoid dental problems as they grew older.

"That is the biggest challenge someone with no teeth at all," says Simon. "I have to build their teeth in the shortest period of time possible.

"Some people have lived without their own teeth for years, but can no longer cope with the embarrassment of being unable to eat comfortably and chew, or they are embarrassed about their smile."

Incredibly, this work can progress rapidly, from having dentures one day to teeth the next.

"To be able to give them their teeth back is unbelievably rewarding," Simon says.

One of the key reasons for clients to praise Simon's dentistry is that it is undetectable.

"The greatest compliment from any of my patients is to hear how their friends or family have commented on their beautiful smile, and not realised that they've had dentistry."

Using ceramics, Simon and his three-strong team make sure there is a match in colour, shape and translucency.

Simon qualified at Guy's Hospital in London and went on to spend five years working in London teaching hospitals, including Guy's. He taught part-time while establishing his practice in the capital's busy financial district. He has taught cosmetic dentistry all over the country and abroad.

As well as improving and replacing teeth, he has inserted jewels into them diamonds as opposed to coloured stones.

"Coloured stones look terrible," he says. "Mick Jagger famously had emeralds embedded in his teeth which looked like a bit of spinach."

As for his own teeth, he has no worries there, although he has had them whitened.

"Like everyone's teeth, as they grow older they started to look a little more yellow. I am very lucky because I have got a big, broad smile."

l For details about training to be a dentist, call the Learning and Teaching office at Leeds Dental Institute on (0113) 3436199, or contact the British Dental Association at www.bda.org.uk.