‘Silence can be deafening for those older people who will spend Christmas Day on their own’

AGE UK HAS LIFTED THE LID ON WHAT DECEMBER 25 WILL BE LIKE FOR MORE THAN ONE MILLION SOCIALLY ISOLATED ELDERLY MEN AND WOMEN - AS STARS BACK THEIR CHRISTMAS COMPANIONSHIP CAMPAIGN

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MORE than one million older people in the UK could be spending Christmas Day alone, according to research by Age UK - which ambassador Dame Joanna Lumley has branded a ‘crisis hidden in plain sight’.

The actor and campaigner warned the ‘silence can be deafening’ for socially isolated older people, especially during the festive season.

Age UK said its polling of more than 2,600 people aged 65 and over suggested 11 per cent will eat dinner alone on December 25, while five per cent will not see or speak to anyone during the entire day.

It said its findings, when considered in terms of the overall population, suggest 1.5 million people will eat alone on Christmas Day.