Robert Waiton in 2019
Robert Weighton, the oldest man in the world, has died in the United Kingdom. He would have celebrated his 112th birthday in March. In February, Waiton became the longest-lived man after the death of Japanese man Tetsu Watanabe, who was also 112 years old.
The Waiton family statement said he was an “extraordinary person” who “passed away peacefully in his sleep from cancer. This happened on Thursday morning.
Robert Waiton was born on March 29, 1908 in the city of Hull (also known as Gull) in East Yorkshire.
“Bob was an extraordinary man, and for his family – not just because he reached such an incredible age,” his relatives said. “He was an example for all of us to admire, he lived his life and engaged with a wide variety of people from all over the world with great interest.”
“He saw everyone as his own brothers and sisters and believed in the need to protect, love and care for each other. He had many friends, he read and talked about politics, theology, ecology and much more until his death,” the Waiton family writes.
“He was very concerned about the environment. The second bedroom in his apartment served as a workshop where he made a lot of furniture, windmills, and puzzles that he sold to raise money for charity. We are extremely grateful that Bob remained our witty, kind, knowledgeable, and conversational father, grandfather, and great-grandfather to the very end. He will be greatly missed.
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Just a few weeks ago, Waiton celebrated his birthday, although the celebration had to be canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. In an interview with journalists, he confessed that he was worried about the situation with Covid-19. “During World War II, we knew what to do to win because Churchill united the country,” Bob said. “We knew we could win, but with this virus, everything is unclear.”
At the same time, Waiton refused to accept the traditional postcards from the Queen, which are sent to all people in Britain who have reached the age of 100. “I no longer want to receive these postcards because I have already received about 10 of them and I feel that the Queen should not be wasting her time and energy on this. I chose the one where she is smiling and looking happy, and I keep that postcard on my desk,” he said.
Throughout his life, the British man worked as an engineer and had to make long business trips to Taiwan, Japan and Canada. In an interview with the BBC, he said that the secret to his longevity was “trying not to die. Robert Waiton was born on the same day as Britain’s oldest woman, Joan Hoccard of Poole. He is survived by two children, David and Dorothy, 10 grandchildren and 25 great-grandchildren.
The oldest living person in the world is a Japanese woman, Kane Tanaka, who is 117 years old.