EVEN at the grand age of 102, Otley's oldest resident never goes out without looking her best.

Amy Marston celebrated her birthday yesterday with her friends and family and after a hearty breakfast, made plans for a trip out for a pub lunch.

"I like to read and do crosswords and I like a trip out for a pub lunch, and I'll never go out without my makeup on," she said.

Mrs Marston, who has been married twice, has a 78-year-old daughter, Rosalind Hopkins, five grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren and four step great grandchildren. Her second husband, Joseph, died in 1970.

Apart from a brief spells living in London, when she was first married, and Manchester, Mrs Marston has lived in Otley.

Her own mother, Emily Howes, died just days short of her 101st birthday, while her father, James was one of the town's oldest residents when he died aged 92.

In her 90s, she visited primary schools, including her old one, Westgate Primary School, to talk to children and when she was 100 she was chosen by Cadburys Chocolate to help celebrate the company's own 100th anniversary.

She remembers the River Wharfe in Otley flooding and freezing over and her homes being lit by gas light. She also remembers using a slate to write on at school and spending Sundays parading through the streets dressed in her best clothes.

"I remember the river flooding and the council's horse and cart that used to carry people across the bridge. I also remember when it froze 78 years ago when Rosalind was born.

"It didn't happen very often and everyone went down to see it. I remember seeing people walking across it. It doesn't seem to be as cold now as it used to be."

Mrs Marston is a member of the parish church and of Otley Mothers Union although nowadays she is an indoor member'.

Although girls were not encouraged to work, she employed in a munitions during the war and at the Robinson's biscuit factory in Station Road.

"When I was a girl, I went to bed every night with my hair in rags. When you got to 16 you put your hair up.

"When you got married, you stopped working. But everything changed when the war came. Women started working," she recalled.

As a child, she can remember playing in the roads before cars made it too dangerous.

"I can recall playing whip and top in the roads because there was no traffic and everyone used to dress in their Sunday best and walk through the streets," she said.

Always cheerful, Mrs Marston enjoys playing with the younger members of her family.

"She's always happy and loves playing games with the children," said her daughter, Rosalind.