100-year-old north Derbyshire man shares his secret for a long life

Colin, who lives with his wife Catherine, will be marking his special day with a meal at The Shoulder of Mutton in Hardstoft where he will be the toast of a 10-strong party of well-wishers.

He attributes his longevity to finding plenty of activities around the home to keep him occupied. Colin enjoys gardening and doing jigsaw puzzles.

More than half a century ago, Colin developed an interest in playing the organ and it’s a pastime in which he still finds pleasure. He said: “I went to Madins shop in Chesterfield and they were offering six lessons for every organ bought. I got more interested and kept on with lessons for quite a while until I went to work for the Coal Board and was on shift work so I dropped them off.”

Colin, who lives in Pilsley, near Clay Cross, was employed in the control room and at the baths at Teversal Colliery before he retired at 64. Prior to working at the pit, he was a heating engineer at Haslam in Tibshelf. He served with the Army as a member of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) during the Second World War and was posted to Holland and Germany.

Born in Newbiggin and the middle one of three children, Colin and his family moved to Clay Cross 95 years ago for his dad’s work in the mining industry. The family lived on Victoria Street and Colin was educated at Clay Cross Boys School before getting a job in a grocer’s shop at the age of 15.

He met his future wife, who also lived in Clay Cross, at a dance in Chesterfield. Catherine was 32 when she tied the knot with Colin at Clay Cross on April 1, 1961. They later became parents to sons Neil and Ian and are now grandparents to Holly, Bethany and Ethan. Neil’s family live in Australia and Ian’s family in Rainworth.

Colin and Catherine have lived in the same house in Pilsley throughout their 61-year marriage. They were members of the Pilsley branch of the Royal British Legion for five years before it disbanded.