Isabel Blythe, a farm girl who loves to dance, has hit the remarkable milestone of celebrating her 100th birthday.
Born on a hill farm near Caldbeck in 1921, Isabel, known as Belle, has witnessed significant changes to the place she has called home over the years.
When asked what the secret to her longevity was, she joked: “Well, I’ve always been a good eater”, adding that on the farm in her childhood days, the family ate what they grew. She has always eaten seasonal British produce ever since.
The farm had no running water and no electricity — instead there was a well around the back and candles or paraffin lamps.
Belle’s father did not own a tractor and travelled around the farm with a horse and trap tending to his sheep.
In her youth she used to regularly frequent dance nights in Caldbeck.
“I was a very good dancer actually, and we used to dance all night long, between walking everywhere and dancing every weekend I used my legs a lot.”
Belle left for London at the age of 17 to become a nanny but then the Second World War came and six months later the men left for France and her employers could not afford to keep her on, so she headed back up north to continue life on the farm.
After a brief stint living in the Netherlands with her first husband, a Dutchman she met while he was convalescing in the area after the war, Belle returned home and put a deposit on her home of £1,100.
Having worked a variety of jobs over the years such as a housekeeper in Sebergham and a head cook in Brocklebank, Belle said: “I’m a bit tough you see. I’ve always worked to look after myself.”
Belle has a daughter, Marie; two grandchildren, Steven and Lisa; and two great-granddaughters, Cara and Ellen; as well as nephews and nieces who all live locally.
“I’ve got the best relatives in the world,” she said.
Speaking about the changes she’s seen over her lifetime she remarked that there are far too many cars around nowadays. Even though she drove well into her 90s, Belle said: “Nobody walks anymore”.
Despite the luxuries of modern life, Belle said that she misses her life before the war when the area was full of farmers who worked the unspoilt landscape.
“After all this time, I’m still a farmer at heart,” she added. Today Belle lives in Hesket-new-Market, only a few miles from where she grew up.
She received a birthday message from the Queen which added to her already huge pile of cards — Belle received one for each year she’s been alive.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions she was not able to celebrate with a large event as she would have liked so she has decided to have a village party in the summer to make up for it.
