Town crier deafened by bell

A veteran town crier has been deafened by the sound of his own bell after spending 25 years giving proclamations in the streets.

Keith Jackman, 86, said the volume of his voice was similar to the noise of Concorde taking off.

"Twenty five years of ringing the bell in my right hand has had an effect on my hearing, I guess it's an occupational hazard," he said.


Photo from here.

"It was very gradual so at first I did not notice anything different but then I started to struggle to pick up people's words and the television always sounded muffled."

Mr Jackman, a retired engineer, has had two hearing aids fitted and plans to continue his job, shouting "Oyez, Oyez, Oyez" or "hear ye" to call for silence and attention.

He said the hearing aids had made a big difference to his life. "I did not realize that I was missing out on many things, like the sound of birdsong," he said.