Peter Oakley (born 20 August 1927) is a pensioner from Leicester, England. He is better known by his pseudonym geriatric1927 on the popular video sharing website YouTube.
Making his YouTube debut in August, 2006 with a series of five-to-ten minute autobiographical videos entitled Telling it all, his posts gained immediate popularity.
Oakley had over 47,000 subscribers as of April 19, 2008. He is currently ranked 48th most subscribed and he is the 26th most subscribed director on YouTube. As of April 19, 2008. His introductory video first try has been viewed 2.8 million times as of February 16, 2009.
As he says for himself, the huge success that followed changed his life for the better and ”is now almost a way of life in that I spend much time there which keeps me occupied and not lonely”. This is brilliant example of how technology can both entertain and connect seniors. According to the Detroit Free Press, surveys show the top reason seniors want to get online is to connect with family and friends. They also are fans of sites offering news, games, shopping and information on health, investments, hobbies, travel and caregiving.
Oakley started to be publicly active and advocates on different topics such as Ageism, Innovation and The Senior Care Industry for which he says that” my belief that with an ageing society so many people have jumped on the band wagon in the setting up of old peoples homes in this country who don’t staff them adequately and/or with qualified staff. They are all under the control (theoretically) of the local authorities who inspect but with the shortage of labour in some of those departments very bad homes don’t get inspected and closed down quickly enough causing much distress to the residents. Even with these extra homes there are not enough spaces available which results in even relatives loath to complain for fear of their elderly parents being evicted.”
His website can be found here: http://www.askgeriatric.com/
His youtube profile can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/user/geriatric1927
