23/04/2009 - Oldest masseuse toasts 60 years
Britain's oldest massage therapist, a 98-year-old grandmother from London, is celebrating having spent 60 years in the profession.
Harrow Council has also just renewed Evelyn Blackburn's licence to work as a masseuse, which was first granted to her in 1949.
A friend's sore neck prompted her to learn the techniques of massage six decades ago, and Mrs Blackburn has treated tens of thousands of people since then.
After the mother of two treated up to eight people a day at a clinic for many years, she started her own business from home. For the past 24 years has worked in a room adapted into a studio.
While she started she used an iodine-based oil, but she has kept up to date with developments and embraced alternative treatments such radiesthesia, which treats people's energy.
Mrs Blackburn said: "I have massaged thousands of people over the years - from mothers and grandmothers to builders and scientists.
"Back when I started, I used iodine-based oil called Dragon's Blood. Nowadays, I use the modern substitutes. You have to move with the times."
In her spare time Mrs Blackburn, a widow for several years, likes to visit her daughter and grandchildren where they live in the US.
Copyright © Press Association 2009
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