For strength Secret to 100th birthday is a drop of Guinness
AWOMAN from Cheltenham has turned 100 years old and swears Guinness is the secret to a long life.
Centenarian Kathleen Hennings credits the Irish stout with giving her the vim and vigour to make the milestone. She has had a cheeky snifter of the black stuff every morning and every evening since she can remember.
Originally from London, Kathleen moved to Cheltenham after the Second World War with her mother and brother.
Family friend Kirsty Darby has known Kathleen all her life and says she’s a force of nature: “She’s really switched on - age hasn’t affected her at all.
“She goes out for meals with her friends regularly.
“She swears by Guinness as what keeps her going every day - she has one in the morning and one with her evening meal.”
Guinness responded to Kathleen’s
We would love to wish Kathleen a very happy birthday, and it’s great she is a lifelong fan Guinness statement
praise of the drink in a statement, saying: “We would love to wish Kathleen a very happy birthday, and it’s great to hear she is a lifelong Guinness fan!”
Kirsty’s grandmother Pam Johns moved to the same neighbourhood at the same time as Kathleen back in the day and remained best friends with until Pam passed away in 2018.
Despite her age, Kirsty says that Kathleen is firmly independent and insists on doing all her own shopping, walking to Bath Road nearly every day to get her groceries and chatting to local friends in the town.
Kathleen was greeted by 20 of her friends who had thrown her a birthday party to celebrate the centenery milestone, where even the local butcher, Darren, turned up to wish her many happy returns.
Kirsty continued: “She does everything herself - I complimented her on her outfit and she said ‘Oh, I knitted this in 1952!’”
Kathleen was close with her brother up until he died and now lives “quite happily” at her home in Cheltenham.
Asked how Kathleen felt about reaching the big milestone, Kirsty says: “She received her telegram from the Queen but she didn’t seem that bothered.
“She takes life on the chin,” says Kirsty. “She’s a bit of an enigma, really.”