Friends of 96 years die within a month of each other
A touching friendship that truly stood the test of time has seen two friends die within a month of each other.
Annie Walsh and Ivy Turner, both 99, went to school together, worked together and grew old together and were even born barely a month apart.
They met when they were four at a primary school in Oldham, Greater Manchester and became the best of friends in a relationship that spanned 96 years.
They didn't ever have a fight in their long friendship, the Daily Mail reported.
The women themselves talked about their friendship to a local paper, revealing how they had stuck together so long.
Ivy said: 'We are more like sisters than friends.'
Annie added: 'Our friendship has lasted because we are both even-tempered and don’t get annoyed about things. We’re not a bad lot.'
The pair both left school at 14, and went to work in the mills where they turned from the dymanic duo to the awesome foursome when they met their future husbands.
Ivy ended up marrying Fred Turner in 1932 and Annie marrying Albert Walsh two years later.
After Annie and Albert got married, they surprised Ivy and Fred with a joint honeymoon.
Fred died in 1976 after 44 years of marriage, while Albert passed away in 2005. Both Ivy and Annie stuck together through those hard times, and shared each others grief.
Annie and Albert ended up having three kids together, Barry, 69 Christine, 64 and Denise, 62.
Annie's daughter, Christine , believed that they would still be friends together even after death.
"I don’t know what happens when you die but I would like to think that once my mum died she looked down on Ivy and said, 'come on Ivy, let’s go and find Fred and Albert and go for a walk together.'
"It’s such a shame because they were only a couple of months off getting their telegram from the Queen. They were great friends so much so we would call Ivy, our 'Auntie Ivy'."
Christine opened up on the special bond that her mother and Ivy shared over the years.
"As far as I know they first met aged four at what used to be Higginshaw Lane School. After they left school at 14 both mum and Ivy went to work in the mills like girls often would in those days.
"They also played hockey in their spare time and enjoy holidays together and then when they met their future husbands they used to go off as a foursome."
Christine spoke of how close the whole family was.
"They used to visit up at our home often and come on family holidays and they all used to enjoy playing tennis and going ballroom dancing together," she said.
"They ran a market stall together selling handmade curtains that Ivy would make and Fred would go out in his car and buy the material.
"I remember when Ivy and Fred would take me and my sister out in their car when I was about nine - that was a real treat in those days because not many people had one."
