VIDEO: Villagers gather to sing Happy Birthday for isolated 100-year-old watching from balcony

A 100-YEAR-OLD who reached his milestone year in self-isolation was at the centre of a mass Happy Birthday sing-along after friends and neighbours rallied round.

Maintaining social distancing, they came out on their balconies at the block of flats where Bill Sykes lives in Milford and congregated on the clifftop opposite to sing, wave and applaud to him.

A delighted Bill came out and shouted his thanks to the people who had come to see him on his special day.

Bill, who lives in Solent Pines on the beachfront, had been looking forward to having a celebratory meal with friends and family at the Lord Bute in Highcliffe but this was cancelled due to the coronavirus lockdown.

His family do not live nearby so Bill faced having a very quiet day – until the Milford Covid-19 Mutual Aid Group rallied around to help him celebrate.

They have been helping him with his shopping, among other things, and when they heard about his 100th they knew they had to do something to help.

A spokesperson for the group said: “We did not want him to allow this amazing milestone to be missed without being marked in some way.”

After an appeal went out on social media, neighbours, friends and volunteers gathered safely to wish Bill a happy birthday on Wednesday morning.

Bill was presented with a birthday cake by the South Lawn Hotel which has set up a delivery service to provide the village with meals and goodies during the lockdown.