Navy veteran feels 'very fortunate' after Covid vaccine

A Royal Navy veteran who was one of the first people in the UK to receive the coronavirus vaccine said he felt "very fortunate".

Michael Tibbs, 99, was given his first jab at 07:30 GMT in Portsmouth's Queen Alexandra Hospital.

Mr Tibbs, from Lynchmere, said "it's all very exciting" just before chief nurse Liz Rix gave him the vaccine.

"I hope everyone will fall in and have it. I think it will make a lot of difference to everybody," he added.

Mr Tibbs was vaccinated shortly after Margaret Keenan was the first person to be given a dose.

The vaccinations are the first of 800,000 doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine that will be administered to people in the coming weeks.

Hubs in the UK will vaccinate over-80s and some health and care staff. The programme aims to protect the most vulnerable and return life to normal.

Mr Tibbs said he felt "very fortunate to be in this country with this National Health Service", which he said was "excellent".

The pensioner was accompanied by his son Philip, a retired GP who has volunteered to return to his old practice to assist with the vaccine roll out.

Philip said he hoped his father and others receiving doses was the "start of everyone getting this vaccination so at last we are able to get full control of the Covid pandemic".

Nurse Rix said it was "a privilege" and "an absolute treat" to give Mr Tibbs his first dose of the vaccine.

"We are proud and privileged to be able to do that for our community," she added.

"It's an exceptional day for us. But I think we must remember we are far from the end of this virus.

"This is the beginning of this vaccination programme, it's certainly not the end. We must all remember that we have to do what we are asked to do and keep safe."

The UK is the first country in the world to start using the Pfizer vaccine after regulators approved its use last week.