Britain's 111-year-old Bob Weighton hailed as world's oldest man

British 111-year-old Bob Weighton has been hailed as the oldest man in the world following the death of the title's previous holder.

Chitetsu Watanabe died at the age of 112 in Japan on Sunday, just days after claiming his Guinness World Record certificate.

Mr Weighton was born in Hull on March 29, 1908, and on his 111th birthday last year told Sky his secret for longevity was to "avoid dying".

Reacting to the latest news, Mr Weighton, a former teacher and engineer who still lives in his own flat, said: “Well, I don’t really feel satisfied because it means someone else has died."

He downplayed the title and said: “I just accept it as a fact, it’s not something I ever intended, wanted or worked for but it’s just one of those facts of life.

“You might find it amazing but it’s just one of those things.”

Guiness World Records said it expects to confirm the record holder soon, with Mr Weighton set to receive the accolade for being the world's oldest male.

Mr Weighton, who turns 112 next month, was formerly England’s oldest man then became Britain’s oldest after Scotland’s oldest man, Alfred Smith, from St Madoes in Perthshire, who shared the same birthday with him, died last summer.

As well as having shared his birthday with Mr Smith, Mr Weighton also shares the same birthday with Britain’s oldest woman Joan Hocquard, from Poole, Dorset.

Britain’s second-oldest woman, Violet Davies-Evans, from Spalding, Lincolnshire, was born on the following day.

Mr Weighton previously told a journalist he no longer wanted to receive birthday cards from the Queen and called Brexit a "mess and a muddle".