Britain's oldest ballerina, 71, passes her Grade 6 exam

A 71-year-old woman has become the oldest ballerina in Britain to pass the Royal Academy of Dance's Grade 6 exam, joining classes in later life being unable to afford them as a child.

Doreen Pechey, who had knee replacement surgery two years ago, has now become an affiliate member of the RAD after impressing examiners.

Mrs Pechey, a semi-retired electrical engineer, began taking classes ten years ago, originally starting in adult lessons before finding a private teacher just three months her junior.

She declared herself "really pleased" at passing her Grade 6 exam, adding: "I was surprised when I was told I was oldest to ever get that far in the exams."

She said it was the "third best event of my life", after marrying her husband and passing her engineering degree.

Mrs Pechey, who lives near Goring-on-Thames, Oxon., with her husband Bill, said she would have loved to have taken ballet lessons as a child, but knew her family could not have afforded to pay for them in the 1950s.

Growing up in Southend-on-Sea, she used to save up to see the ballet when it came to the town's theatre, along with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

"I knew from a young age ballet lessons weren't the sort of thing people like us could have afforded," she said.

"In the 50s there wasn't a lot of money around. I knew not to think about asking.

"We knew from friends it wasn't just the ballet lessons which were the cost, it was the costumes when you did a performance."

Instead, embarked on her career and volunteering work, including being a Guide and Scout leader, before visiting her niece Diann, a ballet teacher, in Canada at the age of 61.

There, she was persuaded to join in a class and, finding it "wonderful", vowed to pick it up as a hobby at home.

She now trains three times a week with Monica Cleaver, having a barre installed in her kitchen so she can practice for 30 minutes a day at home.

As she has progressed, she swapped adult-only lessons for training alongside "half a dozen teenagers" studying for syllabus exams, regulated by the Royal Academy of Dance.

She took the Grade 6 exam in July, with the RAD announcing her results and new record this week. She passed the exam comfortably, five marks short of a Merit.

Mrs Pechey is already training for Grade 7 and aspires to complete Grade 8, as well as working "en pointe".

"I'm just en pointe but only on the barre and strictly supervised," Mrs Pechey said. "All little girls want to go en pointe - just because I'm 71 doesn't mean I'm not a little girl."

Her appearance has changed so drastically that some people no longer recognise Mrs Pechey in the street.

As well as increasing her fitness, Mrs Pechey also credits her ballet training with helping her to recover from knee replacement surgery.

She said: "I have gone down from a size 20 to a size 12. My shape has changed totally, I'm fitter, I'm more flexible. My posture has improved and by dancing on stage my confidence has grown.

Swan Lake, by the Australian Ballet at the London Coliseum. Mrs Pechey has performed in a local version of the ballet

"I have got better balance than a lot of people that are younger than me, and I'm stronger too.

"I try to do two minutes standing on one leg each day when I clean my teeth but often something else distracts me."

She added: "People always say I'm determined - you set me on a track and I keep going."

As a result of her progress, the ballet dancer has recently performed on the stage at Reading's Hexagon Theatre in Copp��lia, a classic ballet which she loved as a child, and danced with the prince in Swan Lake in 2010.

"I'm starting to enjoy performances, and I quite enjoy the exams. I used to hate exams," Mrs Pechey said.