LIVING alone in old age can bring endless problems, not least the frustration of having no-one to talk to.

Colin Packer, 84, has moved from one empty house to another in Steeple Aston, near Bicester – first after the death of his wife, and then after a devastating fall.

He and his wife first met as teenagers in Ickenham, Middlesex, during the Second World War through Mr Packer’s friend Peter. He said: “One Sunday I went to see Peter and there was this girl there with bright red hair. It was his cousin Doris. She hated the name.

“I was tall and gangly, but she was struck. I went into the Navy and she asked to write to me while I was abroad. It was fashionable in those days to write to people.”

For years Mr Packer worked as a cartographer in the Merchant Navy. He divorced his first wife in 1963, and then met Doris again at a dinner party.

The pair were married for more than 35 years before Doris died of liver damage in 2006.

Mr Packer said: “I did my best but eventually she passed away – in a way I was happy for her, but miserable myself.

“I moved because the house was our house; all it did was bring back memories.”

After the loss of his wife Mr Packer moved to a second house in Steeple Aston.

He lived there until 2013, when one night he fell down the stairs in the dark.

He said: “I switched the lights on and my left leg wasn’t working. I was injured and had nobody there.

“I spent several weeks at the Horton; they kept me sedated for two weeks but apparently it didn’t stop me swearing.

“I was screaming with pain. I had smashed my hip and was screwed together with screws and glue. Then they took me back to the empty house – there wasn’t anywhere else to go.”

In his current bungalow, he frequently wakes up as early as 4.30am but takes until 10am to shower and make a cup of tea.

Although his son Charlie, 43, lives with his family in nearby Bicester, Mr Packer frequently feels lonely and vulnerable – and desperate for a chat.

He said: “I’m in a certain amount of pain and I fall down a lot. I’ve got two duff knees now so I fall down twice as often.

“I feel lonely. I’m by myself a fair bit and will talk the hind legs off a donkey because I don’t get much practice. I have tried talking to the television but they’re terribly rude and don’t answer.”

To ease his isolation, Mr Packer gets two telephone calls a week from Age UK Oxfordshire volunteers Tony, on Mondays, and Kathy on Wednesdays.

He said: “Kathy asks how I’m getting on, and me and Tony discuss the ways of the world. I like talking to people. Sometimes it goes on for as much as half an hour.

“They cover as much ground as possible, for which I admire them. They must be very tired at the end of it.”

HOW TO HELP PEOPLE LIKE COLIN

  • Donate to the Lonely this Christmas appeal, which is aiming to raise £5,400 by Christmas to support Age UK Oxfordshire and its Phone Friends service. Text AUKO52 £3 to 70070 to give £3 or visit campaign.justgiving.com/charity/ageukoxfordshire/endloneliness to pledge an amount of your choice.
  • Volunteer with Age UK Oxfordshire. Ten new recruits are being sought over the Christmas period. There is no set minimum age and Phone Friends can volunteer from just two hours per week. To find out more, email volunteering@ageukoxfordshire.org.uk. 
  • If you’re organising a Christmas lunch for neighbours and older people who may not have anyone to share the day with, register it at communitychristmas.org.uk