Local lives
The life and times of Peggy Agnew, Marylebone resident and Age UK volunteer
Interview: Jean-Paul Aubin-Parvu
Images: Orlando Gili
I grew up in Cheshire, outside Wilmslow, which was a small village back then. We had a lovely, happy family life in the countryside. Manchester was badly bombed by the Germans during World War II, so we would hear the bombers going over and we spent many nights in our air raid shelter, but we didn’t actually have any bombs drop near us.
I remember very clearly when war broke out on 3rd September 1939, but I didn’t know what was going to happen. I was very ignorant about it really, and lived a fairly normal life. But for our parents it must have been dreadful because they’d already been through a terrible war and they knew what was coming.
We had evacuees from Manchester staying with us for a time, but they all got fed up and returned to Manchester pretty quickly. I don’t think they liked the country life. Rationing was one of the main things I remember. We had very little petrol and so went everywhere by bicycle. I had a cousin who was married during the war, a lovely cousin called Caroline, and we all gave our clothing coupons to her so that they she could get some nice clothes to go away with.
I loved music, and played the piano. After leaving school I went to a college called the London School of Dalcroze Eurhythmics. Dalcroze Eurhythmics is a method for teaching music through movement, which I had got hooked on at school—we had a wonderful teacher—so I trained for three years and became a qualified music teacher.
Hot in the city
I taught throughout my twenties, and by the time I reached my early thirties all my friends were marrying and starting families—and I wasn’t like that, I have never married. So I went off to Italy for a year, which was a marvellous experience. I lived with a family in a Palladian villa outside Venice for three months, looking after their children, and then moved with them to their house in Florence just before Christmas. I left that family after a month or two but stayed on in Florence teaching English and then spent the summer at the seaside as it was too hot in the city.
I returned to my teaching at a co-ed school in Manchester and was also made secretary of a local music festival, which I enjoyed doing very much. I then decided to have a break from teaching, came to London and found a job in the small music department of the National Council of Social Service, as it was then called. Financed largely by the Carnegie United Kingdom Trust, we were able to do a lot of research work on music teaching for disabled children and in prisons, youth clubs and that sort of thing. I loved that enormously, got to know many people in the music world and travelled all over the place, particularly down to Dartington College of Arts in Devon where we put on lot of courses.
One of the advantages of being single with no dependents is you can just chop and change every now and then, so I finished up by working with the John Lewis Partnership. As social secretary I was responsible for organising leisure activities for the staff. We had a theatre next to my office on Oxford Street where we put on operas, plays, films, lectures, recitals and an annual flower show. It was wonderful fun. We also organised sporting events including football, cricket and darts tournaments, although I didn’t enjoy the darts awfully because I’m not a great beer drinker.
A very full life
A couple of years ago I received an email out of the blue from Age UK Westminster asking if I’d like a befriender to come and visit me for a chat. Luckily, I lead a very full life and have lots of friends. I am registered partially sighted, but apart from that I’m very healthy. And so I replied, saying thanks very much for thinking of me, but I didn’t really need one at the moment. I added that if they were short of befrienders then please do let me know. And that’s how I became a volunteer for Age UK Westminster.
The charity put me in touch with a lovely, most interesting Indian lady who was in her late eighties. She lives nearby in Marylebone and I’ve been her befriender for two years now. I would ring her up to arrange a time to meet at a nearby cafe for a coffee or tea—hot chocolate was always popular—and the two of us would sit and chat for an hour every week. I’d get her to talk as much as possible about her life in India as a child, which was fascinating to me, and I think we’ve become quite good friends. During lockdown, we had to chat on the telephone instead.
I get a great deal of pleasure from our conversations and I hope she does too. But I suppose the reason I do it is because I feel I am so lucky. I have my health, my friends and family, and I know there are people out there who are less fortunate. Social isolation and loneliness can be a big problem among older people, especially in a big city like London. Some find it very difficult indeed, particularly this year. I used to visit my mother in her care home and there were people there who didn’t have any family visiting them. There are people who are very alone in the world, which is terribly sad.
All the practical things
Age UK Westminster does an absolutely wonderful job, not only providing advice and information but also providing food parcels, arranging for prescriptions to be collected or doing shopping—all the practical things. And in addition, they arrange a programme of events for older people, from armchair yoga to poetry readings. There’s always something people can be doing. This charity is working terribly hard, particularly now.
Music is still one of my big passions. Don’t laugh, but at the age of 93 I’m making myself learn how to play the recorder. I never played one at school because I was the percussionist hitting the drum or the cymbals. I suddenly thought that I’d like to make some music. I used to have a piano which I got rid of and so now I’m trying to learn the recorder. What the neighbours must think of it I shudder to think—poor things.
Sport is another great joy. Cricket is in the blood and when I lived in Cheshire I’d often go to Old Trafford with my brother, who was a very keen cricketer. And I’ve been to Lord’s many, many times since moving down to London. I was up in West Hampstead before moving to Marylebone and so I’ve been in this area for a long time. I love cricket and now watch it on my iPad because I can’t see it on the television very well. I also enjoy golf and tennis. I am also learning German and have two teachers who are keeping me very busy. Learning a language is very good for the old grey matter. You really have to think quite hard.