A Rushcliffe care home resident is celebrating her 106th birthday this week, marking the extraordinary milestone with a party, cake, cards and time spent with family and friends.
Betty Wherry, née Bailey – former Royal Crown Derby gilder, museum curator and author – is celebrating her special day at Field House care home, part of the Church Farm Care group. Her birthday marks a life and career that helped shape the history of one of Britain’s most renowned porcelain manufacturers.
Betty began work at Royal Crown Derby on 4 June 1934 as a 14-year-old apprentice gilder. Her early years were defined by long hours, meticulous training and the steady discipline required to master the banding wheel and the delicate application of gold.
She was given a white cup marked “workman’s use” and fitted for the correct height stool, as it was “most important that we sat comfortably with the elbows just resting on the table.”
Part of her training involved the use of the banding wheel, a very difficult skill to master. Apprentices first practised painting by using a colour they called “best red”, before progressing to gold itself – and Betty would later mark her finished pieces with her distinctive two small dots.
She worked a 54-hour week in the apprentice gilding room, carrying ware for firing, assisting with demanding processes such as acid etching and gradually refining the intricate strokes that defined Royal Crown Derby’s celebrated designs. Over time she contributed to coronation ware produced for Edward VIII and George VI, and her characteristic mark can still be found on surviving pieces.
During the Second World War, Betty was directed into aircraft manufacturing before returning to Royal Crown Derby in 1945 to establish a new training school for gilders. She went on to lead junior and senior gilders through a period of significant modernisation, helping to improve quality while adapting to changing technologies, including the introduction of silk-screening in the 1960s.
In 1972, Betty became assistant curator of the factory museum, working alongside John Twitchett to document patterns and shapes in research later published in book form. That same year she represented the firm in Chicago at “British Fortnight” and subsequently completed a tour of Canada and America demonstrating her gilding skills.
Betty retired in 1984 after fifty years of service. In 2008 she published Gold in My Veins – My Life as a Derby Gilder, a detailed account of her experiences that remains an important record of women’s working lives from 1934 onwards.
Now celebrating her 106th birthday, Betty is enjoying a quieter life with her fellow residents at Field House, where her remarkable story continues to inspire those around her.
Betty said: “I’ve had a wonderful life. I grew up in Derby and spent a lot of time with my grandad. When I was older, I began my career with the Royal Crown Derby and loved seeing the world, and I would say the secret to living a long and happy life is simply working hard. I’ve enjoyed celebrating my 106th birthday with good friends and a glass of sherry!”
Lucy Atkinson, co-owner of Church Farm Care, said: “Betty is such a wonderful person and her exciting story is one we have loved celebrating here at Field House. We feel such an immense sense of pride when we look back at her life and cherish every day with her. We are only a small chapter in her 106 impressive years, but we hope we are having as big an impact on her as she is having on us.”
