Friends exchange the same birthday card '“ for 50 years

In our busy lives, remembering to send a birthday card to a friend is not always easy.
Jan Brittain, of Scarborough, with the birthday card she and her friend have sent each other every year for 50 years. Picture by Richard Ponter.Jan Brittain, of Scarborough, with the birthday card she and her friend have sent each other every year for 50 years. Picture by Richard Ponter.
Jan Brittain, of Scarborough, with the birthday card she and her friend have sent each other every year for 50 years. Picture by Richard Ponter.

But two women, who first met at school when they were aged seven, have managed to post the same card to each other every year for half a century.

Janet Brittain, from Scarborough, and her friend Lesley Charlton, who now lives in Cambridgeshire, have been exchanging the same birthday card since they were 16-year-old schoolgirls.

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This year, they both turned 65 and marked their 50th ‘McTavish’ year with a special get-together last month.

Some of the special illustrations and messages in the card. Picture by Richard Ponter.Some of the special illustrations and messages in the card. Picture by Richard Ponter.
Some of the special illustrations and messages in the card. Picture by Richard Ponter.

Mrs Brittain, a retired teacher who runs the St James’ Community Arts Centre in Scarborough, said: “I bought the card in Scotland for Lesley’s 16th birthday when I was on a Guide camp in Edinburgh. It is called a McTavish’s Eternal Birthday Card. Inside the card there are 100 little boxes and you tick which ever birthday it is.

“She sent it back to me the year after and we carried on doing it for 50 years. It’s like an institution.”

The pair started adding drawings and notes, reflecting changes in their lives over the years.

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Mrs Brittain said: “It’s like a potted history of our lives - when we became grandmothers and got different jobs, it’s all there.”

Some of the special illustrations and messages in the card. Picture by Richard Ponter.Some of the special illustrations and messages in the card. Picture by Richard Ponter.
Some of the special illustrations and messages in the card. Picture by Richard Ponter.

The card is now so precious, the friends send it to each other via recorded delivery.

Mrs Brittain said: “It’s a lovely way to keep in touch. You get Christmas cards from your other friends and that’s about it, but this is something special, because Lesley has always been a special friend to me from the age of seven.

“The boxes go up to 100 so we will keep going until one of us can’t do it anymore.”