English Villagers Gather at Safe Distance to Sing Happy Birthday to 92-Year-Old Veteran

Residents of an English village gathered to sing happy birthday to a 92-year-old resident from a distance on March 25 as the UK introduced stricter measures to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Tilly Nathan captured this footage of people gathered to sing to Peter Sheen, a former RAF pilot who lives alone in the village of Letchmore Heath in Hertfordshire. Nathan told Storyful the gathering was organized by Danny Williams, a local pub owner.

The footage went viral after Peter’s granddaughter, Beth Pickard, shared the footage on Twitter. She told Storyful she was touched by the gesture. “The family had planned to go down to be with him today, but of course this couldn’t happen, so his lovely friends and neighbors stepped up to make his day,” she said.

The United Kingdom went into lockdown on March 23, introducing strict measures to limit people’s movements in an effort to contain the virus and slow its spread. Credit: Tilly Nathan via Storyful