WORLD War II veteran John Fife has celebrated turning 100 at his Somerset home.

John, a former airman, marked the occasion with two parties, one with family and friends at a county hotel, another with his friends at the Coleridge Court living development in Clevedon, run by McCarthy Stone.

“I feel very fortunate that I still enjoy good health and am able to get out and about,” John said.

Born and educated in Edinburgh, he was called up for national service with the Royal Air Force in 1943 and trained as a Wireless Operator/Air Gunner.

He then moved to and served with Coastal Command Air/Sea Rescue until he was demobilised in 1946.

After leaving the military, John married and started a career in the Civil Service in Post Office Savings Bank, first in Harrogate and subsequently in Lytham St Annes.

He, his wife, and two sons moved to Glasgow in 1966 where, following the separation of the Savings Bank from the Post Office, John worked on the setting up of a new headquarters for the Savings Bank, now known as National Savings & Investments (NS&I).

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Here, John received a special honour in recognition of his services.

“In 1970 I was presented to Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to the headquarters of the new Department,” he said.

In 1978, he returned to Lytham St Annes, before finally retiring from the Civil Service in 1984 and moving to Clevedon to be nearer his sons.

And in Somerset, he likes to stay active, he said.

“I start each day with a fixed goal, such as a long walk or going to church, and I love completing jigsaws,” he said.

“I’ve also made new friends and started new activities since moving to Coleridge Court in 2022.”

When asked about the secret to a long life, the veteran said: “Make a decision to do things and carry them out and do what you can to help the less fortunate.”

And what about the most important invention John has seen in his lifetime?

“Must be the medical advances we’ve seen. But recently the smartphone. I don’t have one, my brain doesn’t work quickly enough to cope,” John added.

When asked for some final words of wisdom for younger people, John urged them to “make an honest assessment of your skills and work in a job where you think you can succeed. And be content – it might not initially be too financially rewarding, but it will pay off in the end”.