Diners step in to surprise widower on his birthday

A widower was “stunned” by the kindness of strangers who paid for his meal when they found out he was celebrating his birthday alone.

Bob Leigh had dressed up in his best suit to eat at his favourite Italian restaurant in Warrington, Cheshire, for his 86th birthday on Saturday 10 January.

The retired electrician said he got talking to a group at the next table in Caffe Caruso and they insisted on paying his £38 bill when he went to leave.

Leigh said: “I can’t thank them enough. I was blown away by their kindness.”

The widower, whose wife died a few years ago, has been dining at the cafe for years.

For his birthday he ordered two glasses of wine, a £13.70 curry chicken pasta dish, a pudding and an Irish coffee.

But when he went to pay his bill, the manager told the cashier it had already been taken care of.

Leigh, who was a former rugby league referee, told the BBC: “I was amazed, I found out the group next to me had paid my bill.

“I went up to them and told them that I couldn’t let them do that.

“But they told me: ‘We’re paying for your meal’. They said they had talked about it among themselves and they wouldn’t take no for an answer.

Leigh was stunned by the gesture and said the diners generosity was something he never thought would happen to him

“There is so much darkness in the world at the moment with Ukraine, Venezuela and Trump that it warms my heart,” he said.

“I am so grateful to them. I didn’t mention that my wife died a few years ago but when I got talking to a few of them at my end of the table, I did mention it was my birthday.”