There has been a surge in the number of people asking their Alexas to fart, after a video of two young boys and their grandfather went viral.

Nick Harvey, from Crowborough, East Sussex, shared the video of his sons, Felix and Leo, attempting to cheer up their grandfather Paul — by making the virtual assistant fart.

Nick said:

“Dad has had a pretty awful year all things considered. He has been in and out of hospital and has been feeling pretty miserable of late."

He continued:

“Whenever his grandchildren pay him a visit, however, his mood lifts. They are just the tonic he needs.

“As I was in Dad's kitchen, doing his online shopping, I overheard my youngest son telling my father that, like him, he also had an Amazon Echo Dot.

“Dad has never really used his, so my son decided to show him how it works, by asking Alexa to fart."

The video, which has been viewed over 450,000 times, has led to a surge in people asking their own Alexas to fart and was played on BBC Radio 1's breakfast show with Greg James.

Nick said: “I have never been more proud."

Twitter seemed to get a kick out of it too:

Hugo Catchpole, an Alexa Skills Developer who helped develop the noise, also got in touch with the family.

He wrote on Twitter:

“Listening to Greg James talking about my Alexa fart skill on BBC Radio 1. I think I made him want to buy an Alexa smart speaker."

Nick said:

“When the boys heard themselves on Radio 1 they squealed with excitement. I suspect it's the first thing they told their friends at school.

“I popped to see Dad this morning and I told him how much joy his laughter was bringing to people. He was absolutely thrilled."