Skip to main contentSkip to navigation
Print subscriptions
Sign in
Search jobs
Search
The Guardian - Back to homeThe Guardian

A new start after 60

Stories from people who pursued new passions later in life. Share yours here

8 July 2024

  • Rachel Thompson dressed in a bright pink top and blue leggings in a rehearsal suite.

    A new start after 60: I started to dance at 63 – and was scouted to perform at Sadler’s Wells

    Now 70, Rachel Thompson is part of a troupe that appears regularly on stage, in the UK and beyond. The experience has been like therapy, she says

1 July 2024

  • ‘I feel privileged to do it’ … Fiona Burke

    A new start after 60: I saw children caged on the US-Mexico border – and my life changed completely

    When Fiona Burke saw the shocking images in lockdown, she knew she had to help. Now she spends four months each winter volunteering on the border, helping migrants who are battling the odds

24 June 2024

  • Highway star … Kitty Johnson and hedgehog in her garden haven.

    A new start after 60: I was worried about empty-nest syndrome – so I began rescuing injured hedgehogs

    Kitty Johnson’s son was due to go to university and she knew she needed to keep herself occupied. So she started hunting for abandoned baby hedgehogs in compost bins, cemeteries and alleyways …

10 June 2024

  • Rose Chin on the basketball court

    A new start after 60: I was partially paralysed by a stroke – and it felt like hell. Then I found a new sport, family and future

    Rose Chin was in a dark place after months in hospital. But when she tried out for a wheelchair basketball team, she met new friends and began doing things she never thought possible

27 May 2024

  • Marlene Flowers works out on a machine at her local gym.

    A new start after 60: I always battled with my body image – until I became a bodybuilder at 64

    After two divorces and an eating disorder, Marlene Flowers knew a change was needed. Her son suggested she start building her strength and she soon found her self-confidence growing ...

13 May 2024

  • ‘It’s such a joyous experience’ … Margaret Bending.

    A new start after 60: I’ve been a rocket scientist and a teacher – but I love being an actor

    Margaret Bending adored her teenage brush with drama. More than half a century later, she began performing for paying audiences

29 April 2024

  • Melanie Cantor, Author, A New Start at 60<br>Melanie Cantor, author, Fuck It, photographed with her dog Mabel in East Stour, Dorset by Millie Pilkington for the Guardian, A New Start after 60

    A new start after 60: after a decade of rejections, I got my first novel published. Now I’ve got my dream, I won’t stop!

    After a successful career as a talent agent – representing Michael Parkinson, Ulrika Jonsson and Adam Ant – Melanie Cantor became disillusioned with TV. So she took up writing – and refused to give up on her passion.

22 April 2024

  • Nancy Beiman sketches a character from FurBabies

    A new start after 60: I gave up teaching, started doodling – and became a cartoonist

    As retirement approached, Nancy Beiman wanted to do something creative. Before long she was sketching out the story of a very unusual blended family

15 April 2024

  • Sculptor Ane Freed-Kernis posing with a block of stone she's set to carve

    A new start after 60: there was no time to waste – so I gave up my job and started stone carving

    Ane Freed-Kernis used her pension to build a workshop where she could create the tactile, surprising sculptures of her dreams

8 April 2024

  • Ken Lunn.

    A new start after 60: meditation cured my insomnia. Now I help others cope

    Ken Lunn was having a ‘hellish’ time juggling work and childcare after his wife died. Then he found a way to catch his breath

1 April 2024

  • Rower Sian Davies posing by the sea with an oar held over her shoulder

    A new start after 60: I had to make my life count before it was too late – so I rowed across the Atlantic

    When Sian Davies was waiting for spinal surgery, she stayed sane by planning things to look forward to. Most notably, an extraordinary feat of endurance

25 March 2024

  • ‘It brings me joy’ … Christine Igot in Annapolis Royal, Canada.

    A new start after 60: I was terribly sad after losing my mother – then I started spreading good news

    Christine Igot lives with her family in a small seaside community. After retiring from her career as a French teacher, she uses her voice to make booming, informative and upbeat declarations

18 March 2024

  • Wilf Bishop snowshoeing in Austria

    A new start after 60: my beloved wife died – and at 82 I found solace in the mountains

    Wilf Bishop was anguished by the death of his wife of six decades. He could no longer ski, but knew he wanted to return to the mountaineering they both loved. Then a friend gave him an idea …

11 March 2024

  • Morag Warrack at Rusper village hall in West Sussex in traditional Japanese aikido dress, holding a wooden bokken sword

    A new start after 60: I fought off four attackers – and earned my aikido black belt

    Morag Warrack, 68, was so shy it took her a year to pluck up the courage to take her first aikido lesson. Now she’s giving them

4 March 2024

  • Barbara McInnis in Morecambe in February.

    A new start after 60: I’m a 90-year-old drummer with a leather jacket – I’ve unleashed my inner wild woman!

    Barbara McInnis was looking for thrills as she headed into her 90s. Quilting wasn’t quite cutting it, nor was the ukulele. Then she realised she could be the next Ringo Starr

26 February 2024

  • Graham McGregor-Smith performing at the Old Court, Windsor, in December 2023

    A new start after 60: after 47 years, I have finally released my first album

    Graham McGregor-Smith trained as an accountant, but never forgot his teenage dream of making music. Now, the singer-songwriter’s debut record is about to land

19 February 2024

  • Milliner Anne Reeder, 77, tries on one of her creations in her home workshop.

    A new start after 60: I couldn’t find a hat for a wedding – so I unleashed my inner artist

    Anne Reeder always wanted to go to art school, but her father didn’t think it was a suitable education. In her 60s, she finally went back to college to follow her dreams

12 February 2024

  • The Last Homely House founder Kate Jackson in her colourful surrounds.

    A new start after 60: I turned my homely lifestyle into a global phenomenon

    Kate Jackson’s cosy, creative existence in rural Northumberland has spawned a YouTube channel, two websites, an online shop – and financial independence

5 February 2024

  • Steve Wallis in Ukraine last year

    A new start after 60: I was going to travel the world – then I found a deeper purpose

    Steve Wallis wanted to spend his retirement exploring countries he was yet to visit. But when he became ill, it emboldened him to help others

29 January 2024

  • Victoria Zaragoza-Martinez, in glasses, a lace dress and high heels, laughs as she leans against Argentinian instructor Adriàn Pèrez in a tango dance move on a wooden floor in front of a curtained stage

    A new start after 60: I learned to tango – now I’m out in clubs till 3am

    Victoria Zaragoza-Martinez was retired, with little to do except hate the miserable British winter. At 71, she decided to bring some Latin warmth into her life
About 144 results for A new start after 60
1234...
Explore more on these topics
  翻译：