An eye surgeon says that fewer people have been seeking treatment for eye damage than after the UK’s last total solar eclipse in 1999.

Millions across the UK on Wednesday witnessed the most significant solar eclipse in 27 years – which saw more than 90% of the Sun covered by the Moon.

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Alexander Ionides from Moorfield Eye Hospital said hospitals were “inundated” with worried patients in 1999, but said it seemed warnings about looking directly at the sun with the naked eye were “getting through”.

He added that symptoms of eye damage can include a spot in the centre of your vision, which may appear grey or yellow. Symptoms can develop within hours, but sometimes take days to develop.