6 hours Ago By [email protected] (Adam Foster)
A great-great grandmother celebrated her 100th birthday in style last weekend, with the music of Frank Sinatra and many members of her family in attendance. Nancy Watson, who was born in Gateshead , celebrated her 100th birthday with a big family party at Hedley Community Hall, Hebburn on Sunday, December 15, one day before her birthday. The newest addition to her family, her great-great grandson, Ellis Dunn who was born in October , was also at the party.
And Nancy revealed her secret to a long, happy life. "Red wine," she laughed. I joked with Nancy that I would have to develop a taste for red wine, and she chuckled: "I'd recommend it.
" Nancy also received a card off King Charles, and Nancy said getting a card off the King was "marvellous," before saying: "I won't be throwing that one away!" Her granddaughter Rachel Robson added: "The family pictures have been removed and that card is up on the wall. She has taken her great-granddaughters and great-grandson off the wall and the card off the King has got pride of place." Nancy was born in Gateshead, and joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) at the age of 18.
She was stationed in Nottingham. And Nancy has a very unique and powerful claim to fame: "I saw the start of D-Day. We saw all the planes going out, and I said ‘It’s got to be D-Day’, and I woke the other girls up because it was the middle of the night and I was telling them ‘you have got to see this!’.
"And then of course the next day it was on the news. All the girls told me they were glad I woke them up because they would not have missed it for the world. So that is my claim to fame, when I saw the start of D-Day.
All the A-bases were in Nottinghamshire, and that is how we saw them all." Following the end of the Second World War, Nancy was a shorthand typist, but always dreamt of performing on stage. "I wanted to go on the stage.
I did dancing classes when I was younger, tap and ballet, and I wanted to go on the stage, but it was not to be. I was in a ladies choir and we used to go out singing." And Nancy also has another claim to fame: "I met Lord Louis Mountbatten and shook hands with him.
He was a lovely man, but he was killed shortly afterwards." Nancy was the youngest of eight children, who all lived lived to good ages. But her granddaughter Rachel said Nancy was her dads favourite.
"She used to get spoilt by her dad because she was the youngest. She was the most popular member of the family because she could get money out of her dad." On her party last weekend, Nancy said she had a lovely time, and added it was marvellous that so many members of the family were there.
A lot of family travelled from Scotland to be at the party, and Nancy said: "It was wonderful and I was overwhelmed with all the people who congratulated me, it was wonderful." Rachel had arranged for a singer at the party, and said the sounds of Frank Sinatra filled Hedley Community Hall. "She loves Frank Sinatra, so he did New York, New York and That’s Life.
She had New York, New York three times, but she got up every time to dance. The singer played a mixture of songs and also sang happy birthday twice too." On her actual birthday, December 16, the family went out for lunch where Nancy opened all her cards and presents off her family.
I tried pressing her for a favourite present, but she admitted she could not choose one. But she made sure to remind me "what I do like is the card off the King. I will not throw that away!" Nancy has two children, Christine and Peter, and used to play badminton too.
She was also heavily involved with the church and volunteered at the British Heart Foundation into her 80s. Nancy also met Spanish opera singer Plácido Domingo when she volunteered at the Tyne Theatre and Opera House and when she retired from work, she travelled around the world with her friends. Join our Breaking News and Top Stories WhatsApp community for all the latest news direct to your phone.
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