First man to get COVID-19 jab dies of unrelated illness

He was the second person to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine after 91-year-old Margaret Keenan

The first man in the world to get a COVID-19 vaccine died of unrelated illness, British media reported.

Bill Shakespeare, 81, got his first jab on December 8 at University Hospital Coventry, England. He was the second person to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine after 91-year-old Margaret Keenan.

A former Rolls Royce employee and a parish councillor, the 81-year-old passed away last Thursday after a period of illness at the same hospital, Daily Mail reported. He leaves behind his wife and two sons and grandchildren.

When he received the jab, he had said it was "wonderful".

Coventry councillor Jayne Innes wrote in a Facebook post that the "best tribute to Bill is to have the jab".