Oldest man in England celebrates his 110th birthday at Brendoncare Alton

Bob Weighton, the oldest man in England, will be celebrating his 110th Birthday on 29 March 2018.

On this day, he will be celebrating with his friends at Brendoncare Alton, where a birthday party is being organised for him. Children from St Lawrence CE Primary School in Alton will be performing some songs from 2.30pm, followed by cutting of the cake. Also, Bob will be sharing stories of what life was like during his childhood.

Bob lives independently in one of 46 apartments at Brendoncare Alton. He was born on 29 March 1908 in Hull, Yorkshire, where he lived and studied for a degree in mechanical engineering. After his studies, he worked in the shipping industry in Northumberland.

In 1933 he decided to volunteer to teach English in Taiwan. He spent six weeks on board reaching Hong Kong and a further week getting to Taiwan. He initially spent two years learning Japanese, and then taught English in a school for four years.

When warnings of Second World War were made, he decided to leave for England. However, because war broke out, he was diverted to Canada and lived there until the end of the war.

During the war, he worked with the British Government translating enemy broadcasts and preparing programmes in Japanese to be broadcast to Japan under the title of the ‘Voice of Britain’.

He returned to England in 1946 with his wife and three children. He became a lecturer in mechanical engineering at the City University of London, where he continued working until his retirement in 1973.

He has lived in Alton since 1969 and has a very busy lifestyle. He enjoys public speaking in the community including local schools and churches. He writes regular articles on the environment and enjoys making toys and children’s furniture from wood. He can often be found raiding skips for wood. He sells his woodwork to help raise funds for the Brendoncare Foundation.

He has 10 grandchildren and 24 great-grandchildren and will also be celebrating with them.

Care provider Brendoncare is a registered charity, which runs 10 care homes and ‘close care’ facilities. Brendoncare Alton is a nursing home, with ‘close care’ facilities in the grounds comprising of 46 privately-bought flats, where staff can help older residents live independently, if required.

Bob Weighton, who currently needs no home care support, said: “Brendoncare staff are marvellous and are there when I need them.”

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