A LANDMARK birthday was celebrated by a Thornbury woman as she turned 105 today.

Vera Jones was born in Bishopston, Bristol on November 30, 1911.

She lived independently until she was over 100, but her birthday party was held at Beech House nursing home with family and fellow residents, where she has lived for four years.

Music was provided by a local singer, followed by afternoon tea.

“It’s nice here,’’ she explained. “We get tea, and everyone is friendly. I watch TV at night. The only thing I miss is the radio. But my door is always open.”

Vera, who is a picture of good health, added: “I can’t hear, I’m a bit handicapped, but OK for my age – not being ill at my age is marvellous.”

She talked about some of the people and events in her life: “There were five of us, my sisters and brothers Else, Lily, Frank, Fred and me.”

Vera described her love of knitting and sewing at school, and lifted her yellow toy as she spoke to the Gazette: “I made him, Teddy, when I was 10-years-old and his clothes.

“My first job was knitting jumpers for my grandfather. My father was strict. We had to do our cleaning jobs before we were allowed to go out.

“Our payment was a square of wartime biscuit, it was a job to get your teeth through them.

“We cleaned the horses’ stables and were given a tuppence, we would give them to our mum and she would save them for an extra loin of beef.

“We had to wear brand new shoes on a Sunday to church.”

During World War Two she built spare parts for planes at Bristol Aeroplane Company (BAC) in Filton.

She mentioned her two sons and her husband, saying: “He was my beloved. Nobody can replace him.”

She has also travelled, describing a visit to Australia at age 80, and showed a picture of a billboard poster of her in Dubai.

Vera used to get noticed as one of “the Gaiety girls”.

She said: “We had long hair and big curls, they floated in the wind. We went to the hippodrome theatre and danced on the stage with bows in our hair and big plaits. We would sing on stage, I thought it was Christmas.”