Willie O’Brien: ‘There were times when I thought maybe this was it’

“DONEGAL Willie” – an eccentric character known by hundreds as a fixture in Islington’s Irish community – has told of his dramatic recovery from the coronavirus, as he thanked staff at the Whittington Hospital.

With NHS staff facing demoralising daily death toll figures and knowing that even their best attempts will not always save people from the disease, the more encouraging stories of survival have not always hit the headlines.

But Willie, 60, whose full name is William O’Brien, told how he had felt like he had come back from death’s door.

“The staff at the Whittington were amazing, working flat out and doing all they can for us,” he said. “I want them to know how grateful I am. They’ve saved me.”

Willie, who lived in Holloway Road for 20 years, is normally easily spotted in his high-viz jacket – and sometimes a framed photo of himself around his neck. Although Covid-19 can cause people of all ages and health conditions serious problems, Willie is considered at a higher risk of complications due to his diabetes.

He ended up on a drip and receiving oxygen treatment after contracting the coronavirus, which has now killed more than 18,000 people in the UK since the outbreak.

Now recovering at home, he told how it had started with a dry cough and a fever, before he collapsed in the street.

In his flat, he started vomiting before passing out.

The Whittington Hospital

Willie said: “When I woke up I called 111. I don’t like bothering doctors but I thought I better go for it on this occasion. I felt so weak but I felt I had to get down to the street to meet the ambulance. So I crawled, like a dog. I was clinging to the lamp post in the street when the ambulance arrived.”

He added: “I was in and out of consciousness and I remember the ambulance folk talking to me. I was shifted out of the ambulance quickly and I heard them shouting. I think they were saying I had no platelets.”

Then came swift action by the experts at the Whittington.

“They took me to the Resus ward where I got some oxygen,” he said.

“There were times when I thought maybe this was it. Then I don’t remember much until I was awake in Victoria ward with a lovely Nigerian nurse helping me.”

The Resus ward is also known as the Trauma ward and doctors there treat patients with the most immediately life-threatening injuries.

Willie is known across Islington for being an energetic character who has worked in pubs and halls across the borough including the old Gresham Ballroom in Archway and what used to be the Keir Connell bar in Caledonian Road.

When he first moved to Islington he worked in the Highbury New Park care home, he said.

He appeared in the Tribune last year when he marshalled traffic to allow a funeral procession to travel through the streets of Highbury.

But now he’s having to take it easy after his stint in hospital.

He said: “I am getting better, but I still feel a bit weak. When I left I had a frame and a walking stick. It felt like I had had a stroke. My right side was almost totally gone. If I wanted to pick something up with my right hand I would have to use my left to move my right arm. But it’s good to be alive.”

A spokesman for Whittington Health NHS Trust said: “We are delighted to hear that our team could be there for Mr O’Brien when he needed us and that had a positive experience albeit in difficult circumstances.

“We wish him all the very best with his continued recovery.”