Shredded Wheat secret to long life for 107-year-old war hero

Leonard Howes, born in 1916, served in Wiltshire during the Blitz and has seen five different monarchs during his lifetime.

Most people are lucky to receive even one card from Buckingham Palace in this lifetime - Mr Howes has now received four.

The elderly man received one for his 100th birthday, one for his 105th, and one every year after.

But after turning 107 on October 14, 2023, Len has now revealed his secret to a long life – Shredded Wheat.

 “He puts his long life down to eating Shredded Wheat with full-fat milk and plenty of sugar for as long as he can remember,” laughed Carol Howes, his daughter-in-law.

Leonard Howes swears by a bowl of Shredded Wheat every morning - and no, he's not sponsored to say that. (Image: SWNS)

The 107-year-old left school in Bristol aged 14 to train as a plumber, before getting a job with Post Office Telephones (now known as British Telecom).

But when world war returned to England for the second time, Len was sent to Box Hill in Wiltshire, to serve as an electrical engineer for the Royal Corp of Signals.

Mr Howes repaired bomb damage to telephone cables from his Wiltshire military station throughout the Blitz.

Leonard served the Royal Corp of Signals, and was stationed in Wiltshire. (Image: SWNS)

He also later worked intercepting possible enemy communication and electrical signals at the Forest Moor ‘Y’ station, a Royal Navy land base in Harrogate.

Although Len is now 107, both his parents both died just as the war ended in 1945 and 46.

His wife Alice also passed away in December 2000, aged 81, and the pair were married for 60 years.

Len now lives in Newquay in Cornwall with David, his only child and his daughter-in-law Carol.

 “Len had a lovely time celebrating with the rest of the family including his grandson Nick, granddaughter, Jenny and great-grandsons, Ollie and Jacob,” said Carol.

"We always think of a theme for his birthday cake and this year it was a cake with fish and chips and mushy peas made from icing, his favourite meal, so it was fish and chips all round on Saturday."

Len Howes celebrated his 107th birthday on October 14. (Image: SWNS)

Carol says Len, despite being near-deaf, is still active in keeping up-to-date with current affairs and training his brain.

"At 95 we gave him an iPad which he uses every day to follow the news and help him solve crosswords!

“He also uses “Find Friends” to follow the family on their journeys when visiting from Bristol and Swindon.”