Young adult male driver wearing a light gray t-shirt with an Aztec-inspired pattern, accompanied by an older female passenger in a white blouse with pink floral patterns inside a car parked near 'China Grill' restaurant during the daytime. 4:15

A car radio full of birthday wishes for Nan

It's Iris Howard's birthday, and her grandson David has her in the car while he flips between radio stations. Then a voice cuts in with breaking news. more

The news is about her. Iris, the bulletin says, is 86, loved by all her friends and family, and known for winning the best nan competition 10 years in a row. Then the voice says it is "time now to hear some birthday messages."

An older woman with curly white hair and glasses sits in a car, looking ahead, in a patterned shirt. A headline runs in white letters across the lower third.Save
Iris listens as a made-up news bulletin turns out to be about her birthday.

One by one, the family comes on the air. Steve hopes she's having a great birthday. Liz calls herself "your favorite grandchild." Vicki sends "a massive happy birthday," and Hannah, the newest granddaughter, hopes Iris has the wonderful day she deserves.

Pat, who calls her Mom, is away on holiday. "Don't give in to peer pressure with these youngsters," Pat warns. "Don't let them lead you astray." By the time the messages stop, Iris is in tears, and when David asks her not to get emotional, she says, "I can't help it."

Young adult male driver wearing a light gray t-shirt with an Aztec-inspired pattern, accompanied by an older female passenger in a white blouse with pink floral patterns inside a car parked near 'China Grill' restaurant during the daytime. The headline runs in white letters across the lower third.Save
It's Iris Howard's birthday, and her grandson David has her in the car while he flips between radio stations.

David has one more thing on his mind. He knows how close she is to her brother in Australia, and they spent weeks trying to get a recording from him. It never came together, and he was gutted. So he suggests they try another station.

The next station has her brother on it. When he was a young fellow, he says, his sister used to take him to the river to feed the ducks. On her visit to Australia a couple of years ago, she told him she had stopped because of his bad language. He was only saying "ducks and ducklings," he explains, "as any well brought up young fellow would."

An older person sits in a car and wipes their face with a tissue. A headline runs in white letters across the lower third.Save
Iris wipes her face while her brother's message from Australia plays.

"Well, thank you," Iris says. David tells her he never meant to upset her. "We just wanted to show you how much you mean to us." A moment later he adds, "I feel guilty now." Then comes one last round of "Happy birthday to you."