WHEN Nellie Elizabeth Lane (nee Jefferies) was born, Edward VII was on the throne and his parents' museum, the Victoria and Albert in London, had just opened.

Now the resident of Claremont House, in Leighton, has reached the ripe old age of 100 years old.

Nellie celebrated the landmark with family and friends last weekend and enjoyed entertainment provided by her grandchildren.

The centenarian was born on June 11, 1909. She puts her long life down to "good living" – and she even enjoyed a little tipple on her birthday.

Staff at Claremont House in Lovent Drive describe Nellie as a very mobile and independent lady who enjoys outings. She also has a great rapport will fellow residents. Apparently another secret to a long life could be that she has never argued!

Born the third child of nine to George and Annie Jefferies in Camberwell, south east London, she attended Southampton Elementary School. Nellie's interests were playing the piano and attending girl guides. During the First World War she was evacuated to Chalfont St Giles in Bucks.

Nellie won many athletics prizes for sprinting, including the Lloyds Newspaper Race. The events were held in the Crystal Palace at Sydenham, Kent.

Nellie left school at the statutory age of 14 to join Phelps, a clothing manufactures in New Cross, as a errand girl.

She soon showed aptitude for dress making and became supervisor to a group of girls – but she earned a man's wage .

At 15, Nellie met her husband Sam at a friend's party where she played the piano and Sam played the banjo.

The pair married on Christmas Day 1932 and moved to Coulsdon in 1935. They had to be evacuated in 1944, during the Second World War, for six weeks when the house was bombed.

Nellie then moved to East Grinsted, Sussex, when Sam was unwell with heart problems. In 2000, Nellie moved in with her son Len. She moved into the comfort of Claremont House in 2007.