Historic moment Margaret Keenan, 90, becomes first Brit to get coronavirus vaccine jab

8 December 2020, 08:45 | Updated: 8 December 2020, 09:27

By Alice Dear

The Grandma was administered the vaccine today at 6:31am on a day now being called 'V-day'.

Margaret Keenan – or Maggie to friends and family – became the first Brit to be given the coronavirus jab today.

The 90-year-old Grandma was administered the jab at her local hospital in Coventry in the West Midlands at 6:31am.

Margaret said she felt 'privileged' to be the first person vaccinated, and reportedly celebrated with a cup of tea.

The pensioner is one of hundreds of NHS staff and OAPs who will receive the vaccine today, an occasion being named 'V-Day'.

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Margaret, who will celebrate her birthday next week, said: "I feel so privileged to be the first person vaccinated against Covid-19, it’s the best early birthday present I could wish for because it means I can finally look forward to spending time with my family and friends in the New Year after being on my own for most of the year.”

The Health Secretary Matt Hancock also had a few words to say about the historic moment, saying: "I'm feeling quote emotional seeing those pictures, it's been such a tough year for so many people but finally we have our way through it, the light at the end of the tunnel.

"It seems so simple having a jab in your arm but that will protect Margaret and the people around her.

"If we manage to do that for everyone who is vulnerable to this disease we can move on and return to normal.

"I am so grateful to the whole team who made this happen."

NHS England chief executive Sir Simon Stevens has also praised everyone involved with making the new vaccine happen.

He said: “Less than a year after the first case of this new disease was diagnosed, the NHS has now delivered the first clinically approved Covid-19 vaccination – that is a remarkable achievement."

Mr Stevens added: “A heartfelt thank you goes to everyone who has made this a reality – the scientists and doctors who worked tirelessly, and the volunteers who selflessly took part in the trials. They have achieved in months what normally takes years.

"My colleagues across the health service are rightly proud of this historic moment as we lead in deploying the PfizerBioNTech vaccine.

“I also want to thank Margaret, our first patient to receive the vaccine on the NHS.

“Today is just the first step in the largest vaccination programme this country has ever seen. It will take some months to complete the work as more vaccine supplies become available and until then we must not drop our guard. But if we all stay vigilant in the weeks and months ahead, we will be able to look back at this as a decisive turning point in the battle against the virus.”

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