Eileen turns 105 and her secret to long life is Guinness
A BOTTLE of Guinness is said to be the secret to this Coventry great-gran’s long life.
Eileen Hendry turned 105 at the weekend and said a bit of castor oil and Guinness is the secret to a long and happy life.
Her son Norman has told the Telegraph about how the former ballroom dancer will be celebrating the milestone.
He said: “Margaret, otherwise known as Eileen, moved to Coventry in the 1930’s, and has lived a very full and loving life since.
“Mum says the secret to living so long is down to the spoonful of castor oil that her mother gave her each morning.
“Also the bottle of Guinness that she used to drink every night!
“It is also about her strong character and hard work ethic.
“She has always worked so hard, and to be honest, even when she first moved to Coventry it was tough on her.”
She celebrated with her children Heather, Norman, Frazer and Margot. She also has 12 grandchildren and 18 greatgrandchildren.
Norman said: “We will be have one - maybe two - cakes to celebrate her birthday.
“We’ve got the family coming to St Andrews care home where she lives and having a celebration with her friends there too.”
Eileen was born in 1912 in Hillsborough Northern Ireland and moved to Scotland at the age of eight.
She made the move from a quiet village on the banks of the River Clyde in Scotland, and started work at the age of just 14.
She left school and went to work in the Mill as a spinning machine operative and the rope winding.
But it was when Eileen started ballroom dancing that she met her husband John.
He added: “When mum was younger she started ballroom dancing and that was when she met her husband to be, John Hendry.
“They married in 1937 and immediately went to live and work in the Sparkbrook area of Birmingham.
“They moved to the Binley area of Coventry shortly afterwards, living with friends from Scotland before moving to a house in Sewell Highway.
“She found it hard at first moving from such a small village to a big city, but she was a hard worker.”
Eileen’s husband, John, passed away in 1987 when she moved to Edgewick.