A LIFETIME of subterfuge and intrigue was celebrated in Old Town yesterday when centenarian Doris Cooper celebrated her birthday.

Born in Battersea, Doris spent most of her life living in London before moving to Highworth to be with her sister and her family.

Surrounded by family, friends and her neighbours in Woodspring Court in Grovelands Avenue, partygoers enjoyed a spread of sandwiches, sausage rolls and crisps rounded off with a birthday cake decorated with icing spelling out her name and age.

There was music from the wartime era, and Doris even received a special card from the Queen wishing her a happy birthday.

After blowing out the solitary candle, Doris, the youngest of four sisters, Ethel, Milly, and Ellen, talked about her life and career, which started with working in the secret services during the war.

“I used to work for the SOE, the special operations executive, during the war,” she said.

“I started after the war had been going for a year.

“I was a secretary for the secretary of a company, which had nothing to do with the war, and six months later they told me I was in.

“They sent me six times to places telling me I had a job, and all that while they were actually judging me for the role.”

During her time with the secret services, Doris carried out secretarial work.

“We had to keep everything secret and to ourselves,” she said.

“Nobody even knew we existed during the war until around two years ago.

“Sometimes we couldn’t even talk to the women, our colleagues, in the next cubicle to us.

“I enjoyed it – as much as you can enjoy working in wartime.”

After the war Doris began to work with with the Chemical Industry Association, which saw her travel around the country delivering presentations for 30 years. Doris retired when she was 67.

She said she was pleased to have so many people around to celebrate her birthday.

“It’s lovely,” she said. “But I shall regret it tomorrow. I want to go back in age, not get older.

“ I wouldn’t mind being 90 again.

I’m not the first person in my family to reach this age – my sister received a letter from the Queen when she was 102, which was about 10 years ago.”