Kathleen and Dorothy revealed the secrets of their longevity – including having a lot of female friends
Britain’s oldest identical twin has died aged 105 – three years after her 102-year-old sister. Kathleen Whitehead died peacefully just three years after her sister Dorothy Sivyer died in July 2022.
The pair – who called themselves ‘The Twinnies’ – were born on August 28, 1920. The sisters moved in to their childhood home, which was built by their grandparents, during the Covid lockdown.
The siblings were Britain’s oldest identical twins and claimed their long-life was down to balancing wine and chocolate with exercise and healthy food – and having a big group of female friends. They had just turned 19 years old when World War Two was declared in 1939 and both sisters did their bit for their country.
Eldest by a few minutes Kath worked as a radar operator before working as a primary school teacher until her retirement. Widowed Dotty, a radiographer who treated soldiers returning from the Normandy beaches, had three children, six grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.
After the war she became a physicist assistant. The pair celebrated turning 100 together in 2020 and revealed they never had sibling squabbles. Speaking at the time, Dorothy said: “We haven’t come to blows or anything.
“I don’t mind turning 100. Nobody has got this old in our family before.”
Dotty added: “Our teenage years were our favourite time. You’re free to do what you want and go where you want. We’ve always got on very well. We’ve never quaralled.”
Kath was once engaged but never married and lived in the same house since she was 12 years old after it was built by the twins’ grandparents. Revealing the secret to the twins’ longevity, Kath said: “We do have naughty food but we also eat very healthily as well.
“We’ve never smoked but we do have the occasional glass of wine!”