Century milestone celebration of a life well lived for Whanganui great-grandmother

Shirley Granville shares great memories of a life well lived in Whanganui as she approaches her 100th birthday. Photo / Bevan Conley

The doorbell rings often at Shirley Granville’s Whanganui home and each time she responds with a mild expletive followed by a warm greeting to the visitor.

Shirley will be 100 next week and still lives in her own home with a bit of help from friends and carers.

The hairdresser had been that morning, and a microwavable meal was delivered before the pharmacist dropped by with a prescription.

Each visitor greeted her with enthusiasm and yet Shirley claims that she is “not a very likeable person”.

“My late husband Euan didn’t like me at all when we met; he thought I was a snob,” she said.

“He was a solo cornet player with Queen Alexandra’s Own Band. I used to sing with the band and he would talk to me but I didn’t feel like I had much to say back so he thought I was standoffish.”

Other members of the band dared young Granville to ask Shirley out and she agreed to go on a date with him.

“Nobody had ever asked me out before and I wasn’t sure what to expect but he was charming and he walked me home while wheeling his bicycle because he didn’t have a car in those days.”

Granville must have felt a certain amount of apprehension going on the date because the young woman then named Shirley Mills was a local celebrity.

An accomplished singer, dancer and musician, Shirley began performing as a 6-year-old and was described as " New Zealand’s Shirley Temple” and “New Zealand’s baby soprano” in newspaper reviews.

A 1934 Wanganui Chronicle review praised her performance at a Fordell Variety Concert.

“A song and dance item by little Shirley Mills brought forth instant applause and a double encore was demanded,” the reviewer wrote.

Often performing in group shows and as a duo with her best friend and “adopted sister” Peggy Weldon, Shirley sang, danced, played music and acted in plays.

“We used to go on tour to all the small towns in the district as well as Taranaki and Manawatū,” she said.

“It was a lot of fun.

“Peggy lived with my mother and me after my parents separated and I always thought of her as my sister.”

Whanganui's 'baby soprano' Shirley Mills in one of her stage costumes in the 1930s. Photo / Supplied

Born in Johnsonville, Wellington on February 12, 1923, Shirley moved to Whanganui with her parents as a small child and attended Wanganui East School then Wanganui Girls College.

“My mother was a very good piano player and she encouraged me to play and sing,” Shirley said.

“I learned operatic dancing first and I really didn’t have the right body for it.

“I was too thin and I didn’t look good in a tutu with my long, skinny legs.”

She went on to learn tap and acrobatic dancing and added xylophone and violin to her musical repertoire.

Finding high school education unappealing, Shirley left at 16 to work at the Dominion newspaper office in Whanganui.

“I enjoyed working there and I worked at the Majestic Theatre where I became secretary and treasurer,” Shirley said.

“I had no experience as a secretary or treasurer but I learned.”

Shirley accepted Euan’s marriage proposal in 1941 but as was the case for many young couples of the time, the courtship was interrupted by World War II.

They were wed after Euan returned from overseas service in 1947.

They had two daughters; the late Lynley and Heather who lives in Waikanae on the Kāpiti Coast.

Euan trained and worked as a cabinet maker but in 1954 the couple became business owners purchasing the Whanganui East bookshop (now Books and Toys) in Duncan St.

Heather remembers the bookshop years fondly and said her father built a small library annex onto the shop.

Shirley and Euan Granville at their 1947 wedding with bridesmaid Peggy Weldon and Euan's brother Sid Granville as best man. Photo / Supplied

“I really enjoyed living at the bookshop and the library annex was very popular with customers,” she said.

“When the shop was running smoothly, Dad went to work for Carter Merchants, leaving Shirley to manage the shop.”

After five years, the Granvilles left the shop and moved to Springvale.

Shirley gave piano lessons and worked part-time in the office at Gemini Pepper Construction after Euan joined the company.

She also took up golf and joined the Tawhero Golf Club and eventually became president of the women’s division.

“I enjoyed playing golf but I never took it too seriously,” she said.

“I was not too bothered about lowering my handicap - I just enjoyed the game and the company.

“Euan was a great golfer and took it very seriously. He won a lot of tournaments.”

Shirley has also enjoyed playing mahjong, and cards and later joined the Laird Park Bowling Club.

Granville's Bookshop in Duncan St Whanganui East in the 1950s.

Life took a sad turn for Shirley and her family in the late 1970s when Euan was diagnosed with cancer.

Shirley would spend the next five years caring for him until the disease ended his life.

“Like most people, I’ve had some difficult times but my life has been good and I still enjoy doing things every day,” said Shirley.

“Whanganui is a wonderful place to live and I have never wanted to live anywhere else.”

Apart from a brief time in the 1930s when Shirley and her mother moved to Auckland, she has always called the river city home.

Shirley is a grandmother of four and great-grandmother to eight and she sees her family often.

They will be gathering to celebrate her 100th birthday in Whanganui next week.

Heather said the celebration will be a family-only occasion but there will be another gathering for friends to attend.