An elderly couple who said they had felt isolated have expressed their relief after finally being connected with a landline phone and internet - following an 86 day wait.

As previously reported, Jenny and Ray Chapman of Poundbury, said they felt more alone than during the Covid lockdowns after moving into their ground floor flat in August and having no internet or landline.

Now, after almost four months of waiting, the couple have had their broadband and phone line hooked up - but with a copper connection for the time being, whilst OpenReach works to connect the much faster fibre optic broadband in the near future.

Upon receiving the good news, Mrs Chapman said: “We’re all hooked up and live now, but we are on copper wiring.

Ray and Jenny Chapman (Image: Alfie Lumb) “Since we were connected everything has been fine."

Part of the problem was that Mrs Chapman used to enjoy regular communication via internet with her son, who lives in California.

She has a basic mobile phone but the coverage is bad and she often has to make multiple calls when the signal is lost.

Now she back online she said: “It’s a great relief. I’m able to receive my orders of service for my organ recitals now via email, and I’ve had news from my son in the USA for the first time in months.

“I was thrilled to tell him I was back online, as that connection was really something I missed over the last few months.”

Mr Chapman added: “I can now rustle up my newspapers on the tablet again and we’ve also been looking at holidays online which has been great.”

The couple, both 83, moved to their current address from another flat in Poundbury a short distance away. As Sky supplied Mr Chapman’s landline, broadband and TV for the past six years, the couple saw no reason to switch.

It was then put under Mrs Chapman's name as a new customer.

Problems arose when Sky contacted her in September saying that for work to be carried out, written permission was required for Openreach to carry out the work on the property.

This was done through email, which Mrs Chapman has little access too, because the broadband service hadn't been connected.

Openreach then texted Mrs Chapman in early October to say that connection was scheduled for December 11 -  however the company acted sooner than this. 

An Openreach spokesperson said: “We’ve provided a copper connection for Jenny and Ray while we continue working to get permissions in place to bring Full Fibre to their home.”