Angela Rippon Holding Back the Years

'For the first time in Britain,

'there are more people over the age of 60 than under 16.'

You're 83.

100 years on this earth.

They've got some amazing volunteers in their 80s and 90s.

'But what does growing older mean for you?'

Difficult. Sometimes more than other times.

-I don't think you should be nervous about getting old.

-Yeah.

It's a wonderful state.

'Our team is getting to the bottom of the key ageing concerns

'that you've told us about.'

Deciding when to retire.

Being more sociable.

Keeping healthy.

Making your voice heard.

Or the cost of happiness.

'And even if you haven't yet reached your golden years,

'it's never too early to start planning.

'So whether you're an old dog, or a young pup,

'get ready to learn some new tricks

'as we lift the lid on Holding Back The Years.'

'At a certain age, the same dilemma ultimately faces all of us,

'one that perhaps more than any other determines the quality

'of our older years.

'To retire, or not to retire?

'Or what about something in between?

'Does that exist?

'Well, I might be able to help you make up your mind

'because I'm going to be discovering the realities

'about retirement in Britain today.

'From going behind secure gates to meet those enjoying

'a luxury retirement...'

Wow!

'To learning how while retirement for others is a real struggle,

'there is help if only they knew about it.'

If you're on an income of less than £155 a week,

come to us, get in touch.

'And I'll be seeing how a flexible retirement could allow you

'the best of both worlds.'

22-6 and that is very good.

'But first, let me tell you a bit about my attitudes to the subject,

'just so you know where I'm coming from.'

'I keep a home in Devon which is one of the country's most popular places

'to retire for thousands of Britons, but I'm not one of them.

'Work has always been at the very centre of my world for over 50 years,

'whether that's as a newsreader...'

In Washington, a leading official of the International Monetary Fund has

praised Britain for the success of its economic recovery.

'Being the first ever female host of Top Gear...'

Now this is the latest car from Jaguar.

It's the Phase III 5.3.

'Or dancing with Morecambe and Wise.

'Now that was a dream job.

'And I don't see my attitude to work changing any time soon.'

You know, in many ways, I think I'm not just very lucky,

I am also privileged to be able to do a job that I absolutely love,

which is why the word retirement isn't really in my vocabulary.

I'm now 72 years old.

I shall go on making programmes as long as people ask me to

but when they stop, that's when I shall fill my days

with all the other things that I want to do

because that's what I've always done.

'OK, well, that's my choice but how do you feel about retirement?

'As with most subjects, things begin with the one thing that none of us,

'no matter what our age, can live without.

'Money.

'Today it's estimated that up to six in seven of us enjoy the benefits

'of a private, or occupational pension, on top of the basic state pension.

'It gives the choice to stop working,

'enjoy a nice life and even take a few cruises now and then.

'But it's not always been like this.

'I'm heading back to my childhood home in Plymouth

'to join my cousin Chris who, unlike me, has opted for retirement,

'to discuss how our lives have changed since our grandparents' day,

'when they were old, yet younger than me.'

It will be interesting to see how the house has changed in 50 years.

-It will.

-California Blocks, my father's signature.

Do you remember? They were absolutely everywhere.

UPVC doors.

-Good morning.

-Hello.

How very kind of you to let us come back.

-I'm Chris.

-Morning.

-Pleased to meet you.

-Come in.

'First up, time to get the old photos out.'

I think that's me about five or six, I suppose.

-I love the cardy.

-Don't you like the cardy?

-I do.

-Serious expression.

Born newsreader there.

-Grandfather, do you remember he worked in the dockyard?

-Mmm.

-And again I don't think you remember him.

-No, I don't.

I know when he retired he didn't have a choice.

He just had... Would he have had a pension from the dockyard?

I don't know. He'd have had an old-age pension.

But my image of our grandfather

is sitting in a chair by the fireside

smoking his pipe...

most of the time gazing into the air and doing very little.

I seem to remember that all he did in his retirement

-was go down the pub.

-Mmm.

-Difference in the generations, isn't it?

-Completely. Yeah, totally.

I think if our grandparents were looking down now,

they would be amazed at these choices about

do we want to carry on and work?

Do we want to spend more time in leisure activities

and pursuits and travel and all of that?

And of course we've got the money now.

Obviously they struggled just to put food on the table in many cases.

'But what about our parents' generation?'

ANGELA CHUCKLES

-And there's Mum and Dad and me, all of us together.

-Yes.

'That's me with my parents back in 1948.

'Did they fare any better in the pensions stakes?

'Well, yes.

'It was with the introduction of the modern state pension funded by

'National Insurance contributions when things started to change for

'Britain's old folk.

'Introduced in 1946 as part of the welfare state,

'the idea behind this was to make sure that people were looked after

'financially into their old age.

'From cradle to grave, as the phrase went.

'I know my parents benefited, but as I'm about to find out,

'it was still far from the life we have today.'

-Oh, my goodness!

-Oh, no!

-There's even a California...

-More.

Gosh, they're everywhere, aren't they?

But this is so different.

This is completely different from how I remember this.

-It was all grass.

-Grass everywhere, wasn't it?

Do you remember Dad used to have a shed at the back

-and my dad was always in there doing something.

-DIY.

-Wasn't he?

-Always.

-I don't know about you but I feel that's where I got a lot

-of my work ethic from.

-Sure.

-Both our parents worked forever, really, didn't they?

-They did.

My dad retired at 65 but my mum was working when she died.

Yeah, well, your mum... Auntie Rose was 70?

-She was 70, yes.

-She was still working but your dad was quite

different, wasn't he? Uncle Les.

Yes, I mean, he loved his building work and he never really talked

about retiring, but when he got a little bit older,

he started to slow down. He had a bit of heart trouble.

Eventually he did think, well,

maybe it's time to hang up my trowel and give it a rest.

What do you think he did with his retirement years?

-Wasted. Wasted, really.

-21 wasted years?

He had no interests, he had no hobbies,

he had no pastimes that he really got involved in.

He didn't even read.

His life was sat in front of a television.

Of course he lapsed into clinical depression and...

-It was 30 years wasted, in my opinion.

-Yeah.

-In my opinion.

-But that's not something you picked up.

Well, you have to learn the lessons of history, don't you?

You see this in front of you and you think,

"God, I don't want to go that route.

I'm going to keep active and have a completely different outlook on life."

Well, I did anyway.

I thought there's no way that I'm going to be sat in

front of a television watching daytime TV,

although I know there's really good daytime TV programmes on.

-You do watch me.

-I do, of course I do.

Family support, please.

But there was no way I was going to end up like that.

-No.

-No way.

-I'm 72...

-You'll never retire.

-That's what everybody says.

It's never occurred to me to stop work.

So the age thing doesn't bother me and I'm still fit enough to do it.

OAP for you means older active person, I guess?

I think it does.

'So what lessons can we take away from the past about retirement?

'Well, it might seem like an obvious point but it's always been about the

'economy. You get what you can afford.

'And as we've moved away from no pensions to state pensions

'to private pensions, in some ways we've never had it so good.

'Unlike myself, however,

'some people do choose to give up work

'and enjoy their retirement to the full.'

I'm now on my way to a rather luxurious option for retirement,

if you can afford it.

'This is Audley Inglewood in Berkshire,

'one of a growing number of American-style retirement communities here in the UK.

'But I want to know what it's like behind the secure front doors.

'How much does it cost and is it worth the money?'

This must be it. Wow!

Well, it looks very impressive from the outside,

a bit like a grand country house hotel, but what about the inside?

Is this a glimpse into the future,

the way that more of us are going to choose to live in retirement?

And if so, what do I get for our money?

'So time for a good old-fashioned nosy around.

'Originally built as a great stately home in the late 18th century,

'it's been converted into 91 homes.

'The cheapest cost around half a million but others are rather more.'

Wow.

Well, I like this already.

Just look at the size of this room.

You've got a balcony.

Huge space. L-shaped, moves around here to a lovely big dining area.

Gosh, get a load of this kitchen.

Now this is quality.

Yes, I do like this.

My idea of a perfect kitchen, this.

Oh, I like that.

If this is good, what are the bedrooms going to be like?

Well, that'll do, thank you very much.

Again, what a huge room.

The bed's a bit soft for me but...

Wow, look at this.

Oh, look at the bathroom.

Well...you could have a party in here.

Nothing cramped about this apartment at all.

'The whole place is over 216 square feet and has three bedrooms.'

But, and it's a very big but, it does come with a big price tag.

It's over £1 million

and that is certainly not a cheap retirement.

'Not all the homes cost that but everyone does pay a management fee

'for housekeeping, security, and a wide array of on-site facilities.

'This place is a world away from the traditional institutional image you

'might have of a retirement home for the elderly.

'Which might look something a bit more like this.

'No, this is more of a retirement community based on an American model,

'where the emphasis is for on-site property owners being able to

'maintain their independence,

'so I want to know if this is a glimpse into how retirement

'is going to look in a future in this country.

'To help me answer that question, I'm meeting Nick Sanderson,

'the founder and CEO here, in the library.'

Nick, this is now one of a number of similar senior living projects that there are all over the country.

What really is the concept, the thinking behind them?

Three ingredients really.

The first is housing, good housing, it's what the British want,

the British love. They want the opportunity to downsize into

something that's more appropriate as they get older.

The second is lifestyle.

In truth, a lot of people come here as much if not more for the

lifestyle as they do for the housing.

And the third is the reassurance that if they need it,

care is always available, staff available to support them.

Clearly they've been doing this sort of thing in America for years but

what's the market here in Britain for this kind of living?

It's very small. Relative to America, Australia, New Zealand

it's very small. Something like 16% of Americans over 65 live

in this sort of accommodation.

In this country it's less than half of 1%.

A variety of reasons, I think, probably.

Some people say maybe it's just we have a different attitude to it.

Maybe it's sunshine.

I don't think so actually. I think it's more on the supply side.

I think the truth is we just haven't built enough of them.

I don't think it's been embraced the same by providers as much as by

our customers. Our customers tell us, "Please, please build as many of them as you can."

Do you think what we're looking at here is the future

-of retirement living?

-I do.

I never pretend it's for everybody.

We say 16% of America.

That's still 84% don't.

It's not for everybody but for those who...

Those I think who engage early enough in looking for a quality of life beyond that

of staying in a home that's not appropriate for them as they get older,

absolutely it's right.

What you seem to be suggesting is that nowadays when someone retires

it's not just a question of leaving work on a Friday,

taking up a hobby and thinking how am I going to fill the rest of life.

Now there seems to be a much greater choice of ways in which people

can spend their retirement.

I think the days of a cliff edge retirement where you

got your gold watch and stopped and Monday morning waited for something

to happen, yeah, I think that must change.

'Well, certainly the people living here aren't stopping.

'Residents can spend their days in the pool...

'..fine dining...

'or, and this is something that I would enjoy, doing Pilates.

'So since I'm here...'

Exhale. Use the breath.

Breath in. Engage the tummies.

It helps to engage the tummy muscles.

Release your pelvis back to neutral.

That's brilliant.

'It's fair to say that most people who live here won't be

'paying for it with average state pensions.

'No, most people afford a place like this by cashing in their private

'pensions, downsizing,

'using their savings or spending the kids' inheritance.

'But is it really worth it?

'Well, let's ask those who live here.

'Julie and Edward moved here when they returned from America to retire.

'John is a former GP who moved here when his wife died.

'Susie and John are a former army couple who've recently swapped

'their cottage for the retirement village.

'I start by asking them why they moved here.'

Looking after your own place was what we didn't need any more.

We'd been doing it for 20 years in our cottage and it was enough.

Just by chance, something came through the door saying

come and see us on an open day.

So driving here, and we only lived half an hour away,

so we've still got all our friends around us,

driving here, I said to John,

"There is no way I am living in a retirement village.

"So we'll go and look..."

Tell me why you had that negative attitude before you came?

Because I thought, "Oh, lots of horrible little houses."

And, you know...

-Old people?

-Old people!

I know, I'm old!

But that was my thought.

And we drove in through the gates and it was wow.

-Wow.

-Did you look upon retirement with horror?

What were your thoughts about retirement before you took it on?

At first, a few years beforehand,

I was a bit apprehensive and thought,

"I wonder what it's going to be like."

But those thoughts were quickly swept away

because we've been very busy.

We do lots of things.

And here there are so many opportunities to do a whole range

of things that I'd not thought of beforehand.

I mean, I play snooker.

I have a group that I play in

and I think I'd played snooker twice before I joined the group.

And swim.

And there are all sorts of other things that you can be part of

if you want to.

And I think for me it was having the time to choose what I wanted to do,

which has been so lovely.

But do you do them because you really want to do them

or is it just a way of filling the time and avoiding boredom?

No, not at all.

I don't think I've ever felt bored here at all.

And that's been lovely because I think one goes into retirement

not quite sure what you're going...

Was going to be like

and boredom obviously after you've been very active

and busy is something that crosses your mind

but it has never been a problem for me, not once.

John, before you retired,

did you actually hate the idea of not having a permanent job any more?

No.

-Why not?

-No way.

Um...

We were really quite busy while we were working.

I would feel guilty, I still almost do,

reading the newspaper during the day because there was always so much to do.

Now it's very nice to occasionally look at the newspapers

and relax and read them.

No. I was happy to be retired when it happened.

-The pork loin.

-Please. Thank you.

'So from what you've seen and heard,

'would this retirement work for you?

'For me, I think I still prefer my own independence and space

'rather than moving to a place like this just yet.

'Plus of course, I'm not good enough at snooker to live here full time.

'Of course for most people affording that sort of luxury retirement

'simply is not an option.

'Indeed, for those living on the basic state pension,

'survival is the name of the game.

'I'm meeting up with former nurse Julie Ellis, who,

'despite having worked for over 55 years,

'at the age of 78 lives on her own without any occupational

'or private pension.'

How difficult is it for you to manage on your money?

It is difficult.

Sometimes more than other times

depending when all the bills come in and

sometimes it's four months at a time each quarter.

How anxious are you about your financial situation?

Um...

I do get anxious but I try not to.

I think, "Well, if I haven't got it, they'll have to wait."

And if I've got it I pay it straightaway

because they put on the bills

"please pay this by such and such a date".

So I'll pay it bang on the date, but if I haven't got it,

they have to wait. You know.

So you just live on your old age pension?

You have no other income at all?

-No.

-Do you not have any of the other benefits that you're due, or not?

No, because there's no other benefits, Angela, none at all,

as far as I know.

You've got the state pension and that's it, that's it, really.

Have you ever looked to see whether or not you're eligible for other money?

No, I haven't, actually.

-No.

-Really?

-Yeah.

So there might be more money out there that you could have.

There might be, yeah.

I've not gone into it, put it that way.

Cos nobody's ever asked me that before so I wouldn't know. Yeah.

'And Julie is not alone.

'According to official figures,

'there are up to 1.6 million pensioners currently living in poverty throughout the UK.

'That's a shocking one in seven with a further 1.2 million living just

'above the poverty line.

'I want to get beneath the statistics to see what this means

'in stark day-to-day terms for people like Julie.'

When you've paid all your bills, how much are you left with?

Well, they all come at different times.

So your bills are what?

-Rent?

-The rent, the water rates, the council tax...

the electricity, and I think that's about it.

That's about it.

But how much are you left with when you've paid all your bills?

About £50, £50 a week.

£50 a week?

-Something like that.

-That's not very much, is it?

No, no.

So I try to be careful with my shopping, etc,

and going to charity shops for my clothes.

Just gently stretch the arm.

'The idea of pensioners like Julie being able to afford Pilates classes

'or swimming lessons is clearly fanciful,

'but it's also the basics that she struggles to afford,

'things as fundamental to health and wellbeing as food and warmth.'

Now what about food?

Because that's just as important as everything else.

You don't want to go without food, do you?

No. I go to the cheapest places, supermarkets,

and I buy food for one.

And if it's food for one,

like beef,

then I get a dish of mashed swede and carrots for £1

and that lasts me two days.

I have, like, pork tongue.

That's £1 and you get six slices

and I have that with Italian pasta,

but that lasts for a few days so I buy, like, that all the time.

'It's another reminder that the quality of your retirement

'is fundamentally affected by what you can afford.

'But what's also extraordinary about Julie is that she doesn't feel sorry

'for her situation. In fact, she's even come up with some rather

'unique tips for saving money.

Well, first of all, I don't have a washing machine.

I wash by hand, and if I have sheets and duvets,

I put them in the bath

and put hot water on and sometimes I stamp up and down.

If people saw me, they'd think I'm crazy.

Anyway, I dry them in the bathroom

and if it's the summer and the spring,

I put them outside on the clothes line.

I always buy uncreasable, so I don't have to iron them,

so I don't have to use the iron.

Obviously a couple of things in my wardrobe I have to iron,

but not very much, about once a year, if that.

If I run out of shampoo and I need to wash my hair,

I use washing-up liquid and it's great.

I keep my electric lights off

and I've got the light from the television and the streetlight.

I bring my bedding, pyjamas and dressing gown in here,

and I change where it's warm,

and as I've only got to go next door I run in and go straight to bed.

I've got a duvet.

I've got no electric blanket, no hot water bottles.

I just get in there and cuddle up and that's it

and I don't even put the light on in my bedroom

because I can see the lights from outside coming in.

So I'm saving all the time.

You do live a very frugal life with everything that you do.

Are you constantly aware that you just don't have enough money to live

life the way you might want to?

I try not to think about it.

I'd like to do more but I can't

and it's no use worrying about it because you get ill.

So I try and do what I can through the week and through the

months and I leave it at that.

I try not to dwell on it.

That's the word I'm looking for, dwell.

'Pensioner poverty, of course, is nothing new and in many ways

'is a lot less prevalent than it once was.

'Back in the really bad old days,

'if senior citizens couldn't afford to look after themselves or have family to do it for them,

'they were often put in the poor house or poor farms in rural areas.

'Thankfully these are now a thing of the distant past,

'and yet meeting Julie has shown that the situation is far

'from perfect so I want to know if anything can be done to help her

'and those like her.

'So I'm meeting Martin Rogers, who is head of Age UK in Exeter.

'And right away, he seems to have some good advice for pensioners like Julie.'

-Of course, the old-age pension is round about £119 a week.

-Yeah.

Now the Government has a top-up system to bring everyone up

to a level so that no-one should have less than £155 a week coming in.

But the problem is so many people don't claim that.

So nearly 40% of people who are eligible for pension credit

don't claim it and the difference that could make for people

on average is something like £42 a week.

So a huge thing that Age UK is doing is saying if you're on an income

of less than £155 a week, come to us, get in touch.

We can easily do a benefits check.

It's very simple and we can find out whether you can improve your income

and therefore your standard of living and the choices you can make in your life.

'Well, that will be music to Julie's ears and to anyone else

'who didn't know there were top-up benefits to be claimed.

'But why aren't they're applying?'

I think we're talking about a group of people who have been

self-sufficient, very self-sufficient in the past.

They are proud. They're not used to asking for things.

And they certainly worry, I think, about saying,

"I think I should have this" and then getting knocked back and almost

being seen as though they're trying to get something they shouldn't have.

When you add that into sometimes...

Even in this day and age there's sometimes a stigma maybe about going

to a charity to get advice, even though it could be Citizens Advice,

it could be Age UK.

There's still a barrier and that's what we have to get over.

We have to be much better at communicating to people

that this is not a luxury for you. This is your right.

This is how the government's been set up.

At the moment every year we have something like £3.5 billion

of unclaimed benefits for older people.

3.5 billion! It's crazy.

'All of which is great advice,

'but for Martin the ultimate lesson to be learned is for tomorrow's

'generation of pensioners.'

We've got an ageing population.

Things presumably can perhaps not only not get better,

they might get worse.

So what is the challenge for the future?

I think one of the worries is now that it feels as though we've gone

beyond occupational pension schemes.

If they can't be afforded, we all need to take more responsibility

ourselves for putting money into a pension pot.

But annuities aren't paying very much.

Interest rates are very low.

So that is a worry for people and we don't know quite how that's going to

play out about whether people are going to be in a better or a worse place in the future.

So what I'd say to people is you need to start thinking about

this now, whatever your age, and plan ahead,

because you're not suddenly going to be somebody different when you hit 65.

It's you and you're going to want to do the same things.

So think about how you can make provision.

Get advice.

Look at your finances and see how much can go into that pot

that is going to give you the quality of life

that you want when you decide to retire.

It's going to be really difficult to get over to a 20 or 30-year-old that

if they want to maintain their lifestyle into their 70s,

their 80s and maybe their 90s,

that they are going to have to start thinking about it now,

not when they're 64 and a half.

I know. I think about my own kids and how difficult it is for them and

they're struggling at the moment, never mind thinking

40, 50, 60 years ahead.

But the really problematic thing is, I think,

if people think, "Oh, well, it's so gloomy,

"it's not worth doing anyway, cos who knows?"

and they don't make any provision,

then I think we're riding for a fall and that could be very difficult.

'So here's the news.

'There are top-up benefits out there for the likes of Julie.

'Back on the high street, I'm meeting up with her again at the local charity shop

'where she's undoubtedly the queen of spotting a bargain.'

Did you get that lovely coat here?

Yes, £1.50.

-What?

-£1.50.

Blimey. That's the bargain of the year.

-Anything else?

-Yeah, the trousers was, I think, 50p or £1,

-I'm not absolutely sure on that one.

-Yes?

And the scarf was 50p but not from here,

-it was from another charity shop.

-Yes.

I try and shop and get all my clothes from charity shops cos they're cheaper.

So what I do is instead of going to ordinary shops and spending

£16, £20, I come in there and get them for five or 3.99.

-Or a coat for £1.50.

-Yeah, and it's lovely.

You are a star of the charity shops, clearly.

It's a jolly nice coat, that, isn't it?

'Places like this, of course, have always been vital in filling in the gap that's left in some

'pensioners' finances between those with a private pension and those who rely solely on the state pension,

'which is why, I guess, they're called the third sector.

'Indeed, charities are absolutely vital for the estimated 26% of over-60s

'who claim to be just getting by when it comes to the cost of living,

'with volunteers, fundraisers and those who donate

'providing day-to-day social care and assistance to those who need it most.

'And, since I'm here, I've been roped into doing a shift.'

Isn't that beautiful? Have you got somewhere special to wear it?

-Thank you very much. Do you need a bag for that?

-No.

Are you looking for a bargain there?

Well, yes.

-That was going to be for you, was it, Pauline?

-Yes, a belt.

With leggings underneath it would look magnificent.

How long have you two been volunteering here?

-13 years.

-Wow!

-Five.

-Five years?

-I couldn't cope with more than one afternoon a week.

-With all these women.

-True.

It's enjoying being here and being with people and really having a good

time. It's fun.

I suppose we should keep on going filling up the bookshelves.

We've got rather a lot of books here, haven't we?

'It's clear that places like this offer not only bargains to older people

'but also a place where they can feel useful and yes, work.

'Which, I guess, is why I'm having such a great time.'

Hello.

'And pretty soon it becomes clear that I'm helping in more ways than one.'

-Where did these all come from?

-Angela.

-What?

Look at that!

Now what price may I put on that one?

-£1.50.

-Thank you.

-There you go.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

'So far I've met people at either end of the social spectrum

'and I'm starting to see that there might be a danger that retirement

'is a two-tier system.

'Some people can afford to retire, some people can't.

'But I'm wondering if there's a middle ground.

'You might not know this, but ever since 2011,

'most of us don't actually have to retire, not if you don't want to.

'Before that, once you'd reached 65, most employers could insist on it.

'Today in almost all cases, that's not allowed.

'And some people are taking full advantage of this new arrangement,

'people like the lady I want to talk to next, which means an early start.'

It's just after six o'clock in the morning and I'm about to meet a highly qualified

and much respected nurse who works at the local Torbay Hospital

here at least three days a week. What makes her extra special,

though, is that this nurse is 83 years old.

-Good morning, Angela.

-Good morning, Monica.

-How lovely to see you.

-And you too.

-I hope you've got the kettle on.

-I have.

-We need caffeine this early in the morning.

-Absolutely, do come in.

Monica, I hope you don't mind me saying this,

but most ladies of 83 at six o'clock in the morning would be in bed,

cup of tea, maybe watching the telly and thinking about breakfast.

-Yes.

-You're going to go to work.

-Why do you still do this?

-Why?

Well, I would think probably two years ago,

it might have been different

because I still had my husband and we had plans.

When I lost him last year, them plans have to change.

And my job of work has been my lifeline.

I could not have coped without all the support that I had from my

-colleagues.

-But I know you retired, didn't you?

When was that and how old were you?

I was 65, because in those days, you had to go at 65.

I did not want to go.

I was contacted by Torbay Hospital, the sister in outpatients,

and she said, "I understand you're retiring," and I said,

"Yes, today I'm retiring."

So she said, "Look, we're really short of staff here,

"would you like to come and do a few hours for us?"

I said, "Yes, I'd love to. When do you want me to come?"

She said, "Come on Monday."

So you retired Friday and went back to work Monday?

Yes. I said I'd be there.

-You had a weekend off?

-I had a weekend off, yes.

She said it would only be for a month or so until we get sorted.

And I'm still there.

-You absolutely love your job, don't you?

-I do, yes.

But aren't there moments when you think, "Why am I doing this?"

Pull the covers up above my head and stay in bed.

No. I can honestly say no, that has not happened to me.

It's no hardship for me because I love being there.

'Thankfully, Monica's employer has managed to find a flexible working

'pattern that fits her needs perfectly.

'She works 14.5 hours a week, three days of the week.

'Apart from that, however,

'she performs every duty a nurse half her age would be expected to do.'

That is very good, Jackie. Thank you very much.

You can put your things back on and take a seat in the waiting room, if you would.

'And according to those in charge, she does it exceptionally well.'

-Morning.

-Hello.

-Your next patient that you're going to see is a 90-year-old lady.

'Sally Ward Booth is the senior doctor on duty today.'

So what exactly is the role of nurses like Monica in the way that they interface with patients?

How does that help you?

It's really important in clinic.

When we see patients it's a very high stress environment for them and

they're usually coming to have some pretty unpleasant news or some tests.

There's a high degree of anxiety, so having an experienced nurse at their

side supporting them is really valuable for them and Monica does that very well.

Do you find personally as a consultant that there's a real value

in having someone of 83 who has all of those years of nursing?

She's seen it all, so it's very helpful to have her around, yes.

How would you assess her, then?

Well, she's very kind.

She is very professional.

She is always proper and correct. She's always in good spirits.

I've never seen Monica grumpy or miserable.

And she's very supportive to her colleagues,

to me in clinic and also to the patients that she's there to look after as well.

Do you think that because she has not just the experience,

and the age but she's got, because of the age, a way with her

with the patients which actually helps to put them at ease which ultimately must help you?

She does, she does. I think she is very reassuring to the patients and

I think that's because of the wealth of experience she's had, yes.

'But what's perhaps more striking to me is how she's just treated as

'another colleague around here.

'She's certainly not a novelty.

'In fact, she's just one of the gang.

She's very witty. She's outwitted me quite a few times.

She's got a very dry sense of humour.

And I always make a point of having a hug with Monica when she arrives and when she goes.

Sometimes, she tries to sneak off. I think she doesn't like them sometimes.

I always manage to grab her.

Monica demonstrates that you can keep your fitness and stay well

and still work as a nurse.

And I know people who do go to the gym with her who say,

I wish I had the same level of energy that Monica has.

She's cherished and valued here in this unit.

She's a great team member, we love working with her.

If you cut her in half, you would see nurse written through Monica.

'Praise indeed. And as Monica reaches the end of her shift,

'it's the chance for us both to sit down and reflect on just how long her career has been

'and how times have changed.'

Monica, it's nice to sit down and take the weight off your feet, isn't it?

It's lovely. We haven't had a break this morning.

We've been very busy.

End of your shift now. How do you feel at the end of it?

Satisfied. A good job done.

Yes. Good job done.

Now, I know you said you wanted to show me some photographs.

-Didn't you? Have you got them with you?

-Yes, I have, actually.

There we go.

What are these? These are of your early nursing days, are they?

-Oh, my gosh.

-I think they're a bit older than that, even.

-Is this you as a student nurse?

-Yes, it is.

-Where was this?

-St John's Hospital in London.

-And you were how old then?

-19.

South-east London.

Did you always know that you wanted to be a nurse?

-Yes, I did.

-Why? What was it about it?

I don't know. It just attracted me and that's what I wanted to do.

-And I did it.

-This is St John's Hospital in Lewisham.

-In the operating theatre?

-In the operating theatre.

So, this is me and I was a staff nurse in theatre.

So, let me ask the inevitable question.

You're 83. You retired when you were 65 and two days later

came back again.

Is there going to be a point where you say,

"Actually, that's enough, I am going to retire"?

Well, I don't feel like it at present.

And I did, in fact, say to one of the consultants some months ago,

"If you find I'm not pulling my weight, or you think I've lost my marbles, please tell me."

And he said, "I will tell you."

-And he hasn't told you yet.

-He hasn't told me yet.

I'm hanging in there.

Well, I don't know about Monica just being a role model to the young nurses here at the hospital,

I think she's an inspiration to everyone of us.

'So, what have we learned about the reality of retirement?

'If you can afford it, then the choices for retirement are there.

'You can live a new kind of life you perhaps never thought was possible.

'That said, financial hardships do exist.

'But there is help and advice out there.

'And, of course, there are new ways of enjoying a flexible semiretirement,

'which are becoming more and more of a possibility.

'I'm finishing back where I started with friends and family in Devon,

'where I'm meeting up with the next generation to share my own thoughts

'on retirement and the future.'

I've had the most fascinating time,

really looking into retirement from all sorts of aspects.

I mean, what it's done is it's put into context that, really,

retirement means different things to different people.

It offers different choices to different people, depending, basically,

I suppose, on how much money they've got and how they've planned for it.

I mean, have you both thought about retirement?

Have you planned for it?

We've definitely thought about it.

I, for one, know that I have set a point

that I will finish my current career.

-Which is?

-Early 60s.

I don't plan to work much beyond that and, after that,

I'd like to pursue my other interests.

It's making sure we've got provision

that we can actually enjoy that time.

I'm not expecting it to be, you know, Princess yachts,

and Ferraris but, hopefully, it's enough to have a nice time.

Oh! Catherine was!

Is retirement something that you're anxious about?

Or are you looking forward to it?

Quite looking forward to it.

I love my job but I'm very much looking forward to doing, you know,

those things when we retire. Together.

'Well, that's their view but let's end by hearing from the wide array of characters that I've met

along the way in this episode of Holding Back The Years.

What do they think is the perfect age to retire?

51.

70.

I would say 65-70.

If you're happy with your work, 65, I would think.

I would say, for me, 60.

There's really no limit as to what your capabilities are.

It's very much a personal thing.

Well, I did say I was going to stay until I was 90.

So, I've got another couple of years to go.

Probably about 90. Yeah.

-Yes.

-That's a good round figure, isn't it?

Good round figure. Unless we're pushed out.

When they are ready.

When they're ready, my lover.

No other reason.

I suppose, in many ways, this programme has reinforced what I already thought about retirement.

In that, it's a brilliant concept,

providing you have planned

and financially set yourself up so that you

have a choice, to either continue working, to volunteer,

or just fulfil a few lifetime ambitions.

On the other hand, if you are reliant on the state pension and benefits,

it's tough. It's more surviving than living.

So, to get the best out of retirement,

you really do have to plan so that

you can ensure that the last years of your life

are some of the best years of your life.