Street party to celebrate 100th birthday of Peterborough resident and WWII veteran Bill

A street party was held to celebrate the 100th birthday of a Peterborough resident this weekend.

Bill Swann, of Thorpe Lea Road, celebrated his 100th birthday in style - as his neighbours put on a special street party for the former RAF serviceman.

Bill was born in London on May 27, 1922, and moved to Peterborough from Croydon with his wife Phyllis Swann upon their retirement in 1987.

"We were conscious that he doesn’t have a lot of family who live nearby, so we just wanted to make a bit of a fuss of him to celebrate his 100th birthday,” Bill’s neighbour of four years and organiser of the street party, Zoe Bunter, said.

“Bill is a quiet, humble man - but very principled. He is very well thought of by his neighbours and we are all very fond of him.

"I believe in looking out for each other and the whole street looks out for Bill.”

Born in Camberwell, Bill moved to Fulham with his family when he was a young child.

He left school in 1938 and joined the RAF three years later, aged 19, serving in WWII as a ground gunner and later in an anti-aircraft squadron.

He married his wife Phyllis after the war, working for an airline, and later in a bank, in London.

Bill was an active member of the Labour Party for 77 years in both London and Peterborough.

He has always been a football fan and was previously a Peterborough United season ticket holder.