Veteran and 101-year-old Major Ted Hunt gets second Covid jab in Lancing

Major Ted Hunt turned 100 on March 23 last year, the day the country was plunged into lockdown - and celebrations had to be put on hold.

Now 101, and after more than a year of shielding, the centenarian is still hoping for a party and to be able to travel once again.

Major Ted has urged people to take the Covid-19 vaccine when they are offered it, describing any hesitancy as "the same as deciding not to look both ways before you cross the road”.

Mike Hughes, Adur Council chairman Andy McGregor and Major Ted Hunt

Born in Canning Town in London, Ted was apprenticed as a River Thames waterman and lighterman.

Following the outbreak of the Second World War, he enlisted with the Royal Engineers and served at the Battle of Narvik in Norway.

By June 1944 he was a captain and commanded 15 Rhino ferries on to Gold Beach in Normandy on D-Day.

After the war he became a Royal Waterman and was appointed as the Queen's Bargemaster in 1978.

He retired from royal service as a Member of the Royal Victorian Order in 1990.

He was taken to Lancing Parish Hall today for his second vaccine by Mike Hughes, a London cabbie who volunteers for the Taxi Charity, which has supported veterans since 1948.

Major Ted Hunt

Mike, who lives in Worthing, said: "I've been taking Ted to Holland and Normandy for several years.

"Taking him to get his vaccine is a small step towards getting him out and about, having been locked down since the very beginning.

"He's desperate to save himself so he can get over to Holland again one day. He speaks Dutch and gets on very well with the Dutch people."

Mike described him as "stubborn and opinionated", but added that he "loves him to bits".

He said: "To see us together you might think I'm disrespectful, but the opposite is true. We have a lot of banter together."

The Taxi Charity for Military Veterans has been supporting vulnerable ex-servicemen throughout the pandemic, who have seen their lives restricted more than most.

Dick Goodwin, vice president, said: “The Taxi Charity has been supporting veterans since 1948 and in all that time we have never had a year like the last one.

Ted as a young man

“During the pandemic, our amazing volunteer cabbies have been so very generous with their time and assisted the veterans by doing food shopping or driving them to hospital appointments as well as making regular phone calls to stay connected.

“The veterans and the volunteer cabbies often become lifelong friends through the charity and London cabbie Mike Hughes, who took Major Ted Hunt for his second vaccination today are a perfect example of the type of fabulous friendships that develop.”