Yahoo News Nan 'baffled' after video of her visiting Anfield for the first time in 70 years goes viral
A nan is "baffled" after a video of her singing along to You'll Never Walk Alone at a Liverpool FC match went viral on social media. Lily Singleton, 87, was at Anfield stadium to watch Saturday night's Liverpool v Aston Villa match with her son, Jon, when he captured the heartwarming moment on camera.
The lifelong reds supporter, who lives in Lydiate, had not visited Anfield since attending a match with her late husband, Tom, over 70 years ago when she was just 17. The emotional video has now been watched over 800,000 times.
Jon, 50, says he is "overwhelmed" by the response. He told the ECHO: "I can't believe it. The only time I ever get any sort of reaction on Twitter is when I post about my dog. When I'm rambling about the reds usually no one listens. It was just such a special night for our family. I put it on Facebook so my friends could see it and then I put it on Twitter and didn't think anything about it at all.
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"And then all of a sudden, I saw people had started sharing it and were messaging me from all different parts of the world saying how amazing it was. To be honest I still can't believe it. My ma's gone viral!"
Jon said Lily is "baffled" by the response as she "doesn't really understand Twitter." He continued: "I don't think she even realised I was videoing her. It was just her natural reaction. I think she just got caught up in the atmosphere and the emotion.
"She gets so animated watching the game. She's up and down off the couch and she's shouting at the telly. So to actually take her to the game was a dream come true.
Jon said part of the reason behind his mum's emotional response is to do with early memories of being at the stadium with his dad over 70 years ago. He said: "I think some of the emotion you can see when she's singing You'll Never Walk Alone, [my dad] is running through her mind. It was a real chopping onions moment for me. I was glad I had a hat on and I could pull it down a bit. It was emotional, it really was."
Since the video was posted on social media, people from all over the world have commented with messages of support. One user wrote: "Glad she had a great day and I hope I look that good at 87!"
Another commented: "Well done you, lovely to watch you singing along..... I found it quite moving to be honest." A third added: "I’ve got a lump in my throat reading your tribute. Your mum does not look her age, what a lovely lady."
Even people from rival teams were touched by the video. A Manchester City supporter said: "I am an obsessive Man City fan but this is absolutely beautiful."
An Arsenal fan wrote: "Don't like your club but that's A-class from you. Take her there as much as possible. Love to y'all from an Arsenal supporter." A Man United fan added: "I've got a cold heart when it comes to Liverpool but that's melted my heart."
