The Ladies In Red

Kitty · Mar 13, 2009

Chelsea Peansioners Welcome Female Recruits for the First Time in Over 300 Years.

Isn't life cruel? You wait 317 years for a sexual revolution and by the time one comes along, you're too old to do much about it.

Not that romance was uppermost on the minds of Dorothy Hughes, 85, and her companion Winifred Phillips, 82, when they broke through the centuries-old male bastion of Chelsea Pensioners.

But yesterday - as they settled into life as the only two women among several hundred men - you couldn't help noticing the faintest hint of a twinkle in their eyes.

The sprightly octogenarians stood side by side at the Royal Hospital Chelsea to become the first females permitted to wear the bright red coat that distinguishes these proud Army veterans.

To describe the pair as feisty may not adequately convey the breath of fresh air they are due to introduce from today. One was already familiar enough with a chap approaching his 90th birthday to hold his hand at a photocall.

The other warned jauntily that the women might soon outnumber the men if other girls follow suit.

Don't get the idea that these delightful Ladies in Red are scarlet women, however. They have earned their coveted place at the hospital through years of Army service - and they're quite capable of fitting in simply as 'just part of the team... one of the boys', as they each put it yesterday. And maybe even sorting a few of the boys out.

During several hours of media interviews they mounted a barrage of tongue-in-cheek one-liners in response to inevitable questions about being so heavily outnumbered.

What will it be like to be two women among 300 men? Winifred was asked. 'Wonderful,' she beamed. 'Can't wait.'

Are you going to behave yourself? 'Not likely. We're both spoiled for choice here.'

What are the chaps like? 'All very polite. And anyway, we've heard it all before.'

Wasn't the atmosphere a bit blokey? 'Oh no. That's the reason we're here.'

Then Dorothy was asked how had she enjoyed being so much in the spotlight? 'Fantastic. Never been paid so much attention in all my life.'

Might she form any relationships? 'He'd have to be an older man. And a millionaire, of course.'

Did she object to wearing trousers as part of the uniform? 'The men wanted us to wear leather mini-skirts and crop tops but we thought it probably wouldn't be good for their hearts.'

Why did she apply to become a Chelsea Pensioner? 'I didn't want to end up sitting in a chair and knitting.'

Dorothy, a widow for 18 years, enlisted in 1941 at the age of 18. She served for a time with the Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery on the South Coast to defend the country against V1 rocket attacks, later working with a research group developing shells used against the V2s.

She left in 1946 with the rank of sergeant, retrained as a teacher, and became heavily involved in voluntary work after retiring in 1982.

She said everyone at the hospital had been 'extremely kind and welcoming' and added: 'I thought my life was coming to an end at one stage but now it's just beginning again. It's a great privilege.'

Winifred, whose RAF boyfriend was killed in the Second World War, trained as a nurse before joining the Auxiliary Territorial Service in 1948 and enlisted in the Women's Royal Army Corps a year later.

After travelling the world for 22 years she retired with the rank of Warrant Officer Class 2 and took a variety of office and administration jobs.

Admission to the hospital, which opened 11 years after King Charles II issued a royal warrant to build it in 1681, serves only those drawing an Army pension. They must also be single. If they fall in love and marry, they can't stay.
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