A Covid-secure community celebration of the New Year is being planned in Dawlish.

Local resident Janet Leiper has arranged for the community radio station Exmouth Air, which can be picked up in Dawlish, to play two specially chosen songs at 5.30pm on Friday, January 1: Happy New Year by Abba and Lean On Me by Bill Withers.

Janet hopes people will tune in inside their homes or on their car radios, wear fancy dress if they want to, and sing along.

She said while she's been spreading the word locally, many people have told her they're looking forward to the event.

'We need to celebrate ourselves'

Janet said: "Join in in your own way, keep safe, but feel united, with everybody listening to the same thing at the same time.

"It's been a dreadful year for many people and I just think we need to celebrate ourselves really, for what we've been doing.

"Dawlish is renowned for community spirit - when bad things happen we all pull together, and we can all pull together to welcome the New Year."

She said the Abba song was chosen by Exmouth Air's station manager, Andy Green, but she chose the Bill Withers song herself 'because it's a fantastic community song'.

"Everybody needs a friend. I think 'torches at the ready' for that one, to shine a light."

The broadcast will be on Exmouth Air 106.4FM at 5.30pm, during Sheila Beck's New Year's Day drivetime show.