Dozens of mods rev up their scooters to make dream come true for pensioner at Wigan borough care home

Jimmy Reynolds, 70, is receiving palliative support at Belong Atherton and had shared his ambition to rekindle his passion with his carers.

Staff put the wheels in motion to make his dream come true and two dozen mods from Wigan Scooter Club and Bolton Two Hats Scooter Club jumped on their iconic vehicles and made their way to the Mealhouse Lane village to surprise Jimmy.

Kim Calland, experience co-ordinator at Belong Atherton, said: “A big part of our role is supporting our customers to do the things they want to do, so we sat down with our wonderful Jimmy to find out more.”

Jemma Sharratt, village nurse manager, continued: “Straightaway, we hatched a plan to make his wishes happen, reaching out to my former university lecturer Dean McShane – also a mod – who put a shout out to his community to visit Jimmy and the response was overwhelming.

"We couldn’t believe it when so many of them braved the rain and turned up on our doorstep. We can’t thank them enough for their generosity.”

They took him for a ride in the local area, enjoyed talking “shop” and shared stories.

Jimmy said: “When I saw what my carers had done, I was both shocked and overwhelmed. This was a great thing and I am grateful to all that gave up their time to do this for me.”

Modernists, commonly known as mods, are baby boomers who made their mark frequenting jazz clubs, donning fine Italian suits, while their trademark Lambretta and Vespa scooters were parked outside.

Today, the subculture continues with a more casual approach to fashion, with parkas and Harrington jackets and boots key wardrobe staples, and scooters enduring as a key part of the lifestyle.

Afterwards, Dean said on social media platform X, previously known as Twitter: “A huge thank you to the amazing people from the scooter clubs and Belong who gave Jimmy a dream day! He went out in the side car and was given full Mod five-star treatment. Faith in humanity restored, up the Mods!”