CLOSURE OF THE AGE DIVIDE
On page 36 of today’s issue we catch up with the irrepressible Arlene Phillips, the former Strictly judge. Now aged 79, she’s showing no signs of slowing down and recently choreographed Guys & Dolls for a London theatre run that’s showing to great acclaim. It should come as no surprise that age means little to her – after all, this is a woman who had a child when aged 47, a pregnancy that she said was marred by people making ageist comments to her. She also landed her dream Strictly job when aged 60. Like our recent cover, which featured Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Sally Field and Rita Moreno, everywhere you look it seems like older women are more in demand than ever. When you picture an 80-year-old woman in your mind, it’s a good bet that she doesn’t look like any of these superstars. But this is the new reality. Due to advancements in medicine and aesthetics, age really has become just a number. There is now a recognition that not only are older women able to keep working long past retirement age, but the experience and knowledge they bring means they should be actively sought out. That, of course, is if they want to keep working. They might be just as content to head off skiing or on adventure holiday. The rise of older influencers on social media is evidence that there is a market for content targeted at this cohort. They are no longer happy to blend into the background, they want to be heard – and they have so much to say. Life experience is invaluable and forms a much more rounded, informed person, so it’s important to amplify such people. There has also been a tendency to put women out to pasture at a certain age within the entertainment industry, far more so than with men, and it’s interesting to see that mindset evolving. Older men were seen as experienced, older women as ageing – but that is definitely changing. With a rapidly ageing population, Ireland will soon be home to far more pensioners than ever, and it is such an interesting time for our country. We will certainly need to make sure they feel catered for and heard in whatever future we face – after all, they laid the foundations on which everything else is built. Recent political and societal polls have shown that our population is greatly divided on some of the most pressing issues facing us today, such as homelessness and the future of our government. Not only do older people have to be considered in every aspect of decision-making, but their experience will be invaluable in helping to reach those decisions too.
Enjoy the issue.