The friends of an 88-year-old church choir singer who died after contracting coronavirus say he got the illness at a restaurant after coming into contact with a skier returning from Italy.

Darrell Blakeley, from Middleton, Greater Manchester, died on Friday at North Manchester General Hospital after contracting COVID-19.

He was admitted to hospital on 3 March with sepsis, but was placed in quarantine having earlier had contact in a restaurant with "a skier who had returned from Italy," a statement from his local church said.

It added that he initially tested negative for the virus, but a week later received a positive result, shortly before becoming "extremely poorly and died".

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In a statement, St Michael's Church in Middleton paid tribute to "a faithful man" and "gracious gentleman" who had attended services twice a week for more than 50 years.


It said: "Darrell was a faithful man at St Michael's for over 50 years, he sang in the choir with a beautiful voice, described by so many as a gracious gentleman who is going to be sadly missed. RIP Darrell."

Reverend Jackie Calow told Sky News the grandfather's death had "deeply shocked" the whole community, adding that he was "well known".

She praised him for having "the most amazing voice" in the church and police choirs he was a part of, and for his involvement in the community.

The father-of-one had not been at church for a month having been at home with an underlying condition, she said, adding that when he was isolated in hospital, his family could only visit him in hazmat suits that became uncomfortable to breathe in after 15 minutes.

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Meanwhile, Mr Blakeley's daughter-in-law Allie Crewe said it was a "difficult and tragic death" for the family due to the separation in quarantine.

She said he also could not be treated for his underlying condition, "due to coronavirus restrictions".

"The hospital were really super and tried to support us as much as possible, their kindness helped a lot," Ms Crewe wrote on Facebook.

"Not being able to sit with him was very hard for us. He remained in quarantine in an air locked room.

"This has been quite a difficult and tragic death, so send love and light."

His family have since encouraged the local community to carry out random acts of kindness instead of sending flowers and gifts.

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Figures from Sunday show 35 people in the UK have died since being diagnosed

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