Hackney Silver Surfers

Step into Age Concern Hackney to see a small revolution unfold. This vibrant centre is where several hundred senior citizens have come to use a keyboard and a mouse for the very first time.

The kit’s old but the demand for it is heavy. The centre gets 5,000 visits a year, so visitors sometimes have to stand in line to wait for a computer to become free. In this podcast some of Hackney’s seniors explain what keeps them coming and why computer literacy is such a vital skill, even among the over-50s. Also listen to 84-year-old Fay Wall, in Manchester, talking about her digital journey from solitaire to short-film making.

Thanks to Rick Crust at Hackney Age Concern and Teresa Wilson at People’s Voice Media, photographs by Adrian Fisk; audio by Annie Dare, edited by Chris Peacock, 3thirty.