A lonely pensioner who put a sign in his window asking for a friend has been overwhelmed with responses.
Tony Williams, 75 from Alton, East Hampshire, lost his wife Jo back in May. Tragically, Jo, also 75, passed away from pancreatic cancer just nine days after she was diagnosed.
And ever since, Tony has been completely alone, explaining the unremitting loneliness is "like torture". With no family nearby, Tony took finding a friend into his own hands, even putting two adverts in his local newspaper and handing out cards.
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Heartbreakingly, he received no responses.
But after a poster which he placed in his window made headlines this week, the retired physicist has been overwhelmed with responses from people wanting to be his friend.
In just a couple of days, he's had between 50 and 70 phone calls with strangers, meanwhile he's received thousands of emails.
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Speaking to our friends at LADbible, Tony said: "I just regret so much that it's impossible for me to answer even a small fraction [of calls and emails], but I'd like them to know that I've received so many messages of goodwill and kindness and compassion that I'm overwhelmed by it.
"If I could meet them all in Albert Hall I would tell them how much I care for them and how much I'd like to reach out to them as they reached out to me. The love and the kindness and the compassion they've shown actually brought tears to my eyes."
Tony has been especially touched by some of the responses, including a teacher at a local school who asked if it would be okay for the children in her class to write him letters.
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He has even had phone calls from as far as America and Canada!
"One lady phoned up and said if I get on a plane sometime she would pick me up and show me her area of Florida. I don't think I'll be doing it, but she was really genuine," he said.
Tony met his late wife Jo, who he describes as his "best friend and soul mate," in a bar more than 35 years ago, and describes their marriage as a "perfect harmony".
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The couple, who lived in Kempley, in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, for 25 years, were unable to have any children, and so depended on each other heavily for company and support.
Tony explained that for weeks in near silence, ever since Jo passed away. But Tony's determination has paid off, and we're so pleased he's got hundreds of people queuing up to be his friend.
"For a long, long time, for weeks and weeks and weeks, it looked as if I was pushing doors open and they were immediately slammed in my face. I had that feeling. And then I was isolated and almost totally abandoned. And I thought, I've got to do something about that," he said.
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We're so pleased for you, Tony!
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