A BLACKOUT provided a little fun for one New Addington resident last Friday.

Chris Hale, 60, lives in a tower block in Lodge Lane opposite Unity Close.

When the power went off at about 6pm, he refused to let it irritate him.

He said: "It was just like the war.

"I'm used to amusing myself and I watched the workmen with my beady eyes through my binoculars – occasionally shouting down 'try switching them on and off!'

"I considered asking EDF to bring me hot coffee and pizza as well, because I couldn't use my lift to go out for a takeaway.

"In my hippy days I used to be a candle maker though and I still had some of my stock left.

"It was amazing to see how few people are prepared for a power cut though, because hardly anyone had candlelight coming through their windows."

Mr Hale said he was the first person to report the fault to EDF Energy and the last to have his lights switched back on – at 12.05am.

"I made myself spaghetti bolognese at midnight – it was quite an amusing night for me, if not anyone else," he said.

He added: "I do wonder if in nine months' time we're going to see a sudden surge in New Addington's population."