Chinese letter finds right characte

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Chinese letter finds right character
KURT BAYER

A LETTER sent from China to Britain's oldest driver reached her despite featuring the wrong name and address on the envelope.

The mail, thought to be from a Chinese journalist, was intended for 105-year-old Sheila Thomson, who was recently named as Britain's oldest driver.

But the inscription on the front of the envelope identified the intended recipient only as "Sherry Thomson, 105-year-old driver". It gave her address as "Angus County, Scotland, England".

The letter was mailed by Ding Hanning from Zhen Jiang, Jingsu, China.

Despite the wrong name and address, a Royal Mail postman managed to fulfil the task by asking around if anyone knew Britain's oldest driver.

After many inquiries, the postie managed to slip the letter through the correct door and has now been praised by his bosses.

Yesterday at her home in Broughty Ferry, Dundee, Mrs Thomson, who has been driving since 1936, paid tribute to the postman.

The centenarian said: "That's about three weeks they've been trying. It's really very funny. The postman has done a fine job.

"The letter doesn't have a word of English in it. I was thinking I will have to get someone from the university to translate it."

A spokeswoman for the Royal Mail said the account proved how postmen often go "beyond the call of duty" to deliver all mail.

She said: "They do everything in their power to deliver items correctly, even when the address that is given appears more like a cryptic puzzle. In cases such as this, they succeed due to their dedication, pride in their work and their unique local knowledge of the communities they serve."

Mrs Thomson hit the headlines earlier this year when she emerged as a candidate for Britain's oldest driver.

She still drives her Peugeot 106 to church in a 15-mile round trip that she has repeated every Sunday for more than six decades.

Before Mrs Thomson's case attracted attention, it was believed that Britain's oldest driver was Charlie Howarth, of West Yorkshire, who renewed his licence in March at the age of 101.

In May, Mrs Thomson lost the no-claims bonus she had built up for 71 years after she had a bump on the way to church.