ADVANTAGES OF AGE AWARDS CEREMONY 2025

HOXTON HALL, THURSDAY 20TH NOVEMBER, 8 PM.

After the massive success of the inaugural 2023 Advantages of Age Awards, we’re thrilled to announce that the 2025 Awards Ceremony is officially happening!Co-founders Suzanne Noble and Rose Rouse, who launched Advantages of Age in 2016 to challenge the media’s narrative around ageing, are bringing the celebration back bigger and better than ever.The hall is booked, nominations will soon be open, and sponsors are lining up to support this inspiring event.Join us to honour the amazing individuals and organisations championing pro-ageing and proving that life only gets better with time.Don’t miss this unforgettable celebration in 2025!

WHY Advantages of Age?

Because old is still a dirty word and Advantages of Age believes in celebrating getting older and doing it in style. Because we’re alive and kicking and ready to mark all those inspiring beings and organisations who are part of the societal change that we’d like to see. Let’s big up the change-makers.Because we want to call out ageism at the same time. There are Granny headlines every day, there are people in the press talking constantly about age being just a number, about people looking great for their age, about looking young being the eternal aim. Fuck that, we’re sick of it. Time for an age revolution.The UK’s population is ageing, the 2011 census showed that 49% of the population was aged over 40, while in 2021, it was recorded that 18.6% of people were aged over 65 and it’s getting bigger. Advantages of Age is on a mission to change the record – by not only reclaiming old but also re-imagining it.The Advantages of Age Awards 2025 are about re-visioning age for a modern age.

WHAT?

A fun and feather-filled evening with serious intent at the gorgeous nineteenth century music hall, Hoxton Hall.There will be an exhibition featuring the work of our members, wine/cocktails and bar snacks to buy when you arrive.The ceremony starts at 8pm, there will be a break, the chance to drink again, then the ceremony resumes and will end around 10 30pm.Bring your fabulous and flamboyant selves!

Keynote Speaker

Dr Cathi Rae

Dr. Cathi Rae, 62, is an age positivity activist highlighting the invisibility of older woman in the fashion industry. She is an advocate for mindful and sustainable consumption. Her Instagram often features photos of her unapologetically ageing body, wearing the preloved clothes that make her happy with scant regard for the concept of age appropriate dressing. She has 20,000 followers on Insta.She is also a poet, spoken word artist and creativity facilitator who is based in Leicester. After years of work in the salt mines of learning, it was only in her 50s that she worked out what she wanted to do when she grew up. Her first poetry collection was published in 2020 and she then went on to be awarded an MA in creative writing and a PhD in poetry.

AWARD CATEGORIES

  • Start Up School Entrepreneur of the Year

  • Pro-Ageing Organisation

  • Anti-Ageist Activist

  • AofA Writer/Contributor of the Year

  • Style King

  • Style Queen

  • Best Pro-Ageing Substack Writer

  • Advantages of Age FB Contributor

  • Sports Star

  • Non-Fiction Book with a Pro-Ageing Message

  • Grooviest End of Life Organisation

  • Ageing Differently Influencer

  • Pro-Ageing Social Club

  • Inspirational Personal Story

  • Pro-Ageing Podcast

SPONSORS

If you would like to join our merry band of sponsors – do get in touch. We are inviting people/organisations to sponsor the individual categories which as you can see are a mixture of entertainment and inspiration. Get in touch with rosejanerouse@yahoo.co.uk for further details.

Headline sponsor

PensionBee is a leading online pension provider, making pension management easy for its customers while they save for a happy retirement. They help consumers combine their old pension pots into one new easy-to-manage plan, make flexible contributions, keep track of their pension balance and make withdrawals from the age of 55 (increasing to 57 in 2028). PensionBee allows customers to invest in line with their goals and values and offers a range of investment plans, including a Climate Plan and a Shariah Plan. They partner with some of the world’s largest asset managers including State Street and BlackRock.

Gold Sponsor

MyIntent is an online service that helps people get life, death and legacy sorted. Featuring guidance, tools and access to legal and funeral expertise, a visit to www.myintent.life enables you to plan for your own future or cope with the death of someone close to you.

Category sponsors:

AofA Contributor

Monique Roffey
Monique Roffey, FRSL, is a Trinidadian-British writer and Professor of Contemporary Fiction. Her novel The Mermaid of Black Conch won the 2020 Costa Book of the Year. Known for Caribbean-themed works, she co-founded Writers Rebel and writes award-winning novels, essays, and memoirs, translated globally and adapted for screen.

Non-Fiction book with a Pro-Ageing Message

Lucy Cavendish
Lucy Cavendish is a certified coach, therapist, national newspaper journalist. As an experienced Couples Coach and Counsellor and author of How to Have Extraordinary Relationships, she helps individuals and couples achieve deep lasting connections at any age. She is the host of the award-winning podcast Later Dater and of How to Have Extraordinary Relationships.

Pro-Ageing Organisation Award

Grooviest End of Life Organisation

Match and Dispatch are the UK’s leading celebrant organisation, training and supporting people to build thriving celebrant businesses. Our nationwide network delivers heartfelt ceremonies and top-notch funeral know-how. It’s the over-fifties dream job where life experience matters and transferable skills rule. We're super-proud to back the grooviest death innovators around!

Ageing Differently Influencer”

A friendly community of businesses and individuals who share a passion for ethical marketing to older people. Communicating successfully with this audience is where we can help professional marketers of all ages. We share knowledge through access to reports, white papers and market information. We facilitate introductions and connections, and we celebrate outstanding marketing at our annual Silver Marketing Awards.

Inspirational Personal Story

For over forty years, the Premises Studios on Hackney Road has welcomed thousands of great music artists... from Nina Simone and Dave Brubeck in the early days to the Loyle Carner’s and Dua Lipa’s of today. CEO Viv Broughton says, “As someone who’s been around the block a few times, I’m delighted to support Advantages of Age. Keep on living life to the max!”

Get in touch

If you'd like to join our sponsors, have a question, get in touch.

judges

Rose Rouse

Journalist, poet and the editor of Advantages of Age. As a journalist, she wrote a piece on the obscenity of Granny headlines to describe older women for the Guardian, as a poet, she often writes about age, sexuality and death, and she commissions pieces, often inspiring personal stories about getting older, for advantagesofage.com She has published four non-fiction books and a poetry pamphlet Tantric Goddess when she was 64.

Suzanne Noble

Co-founder of Advantages of Age, co-creator of Startup School for Seniors, a jazz and blues aficionado with a special love for women artistes, and the host of the sizzling hot podcast, Sex Advice for Seniors. Her mission is to support over 50s to live the life they desire, whatever that means to them.

Mark Elliott

Mark is the co-director of Advantages of Age and co-founder of Startup School for Seniors, who has been a business coach and educator for over ten years, and worked with both young and older entrepreneurs from all walks of life, helping them to spot and overcome any challenges they may be having. He’s a straight talker and, having had his own share of ups and downs in the business world (he exited from a unicorn!), he is determined to help others to avoid making many of the mistakes he has seen firsthand.

Michael Gresham

Michael is 62, enjoying life and love, political and pretty outspoken, sometimes to a fault. He loves to play, almost always dam rivers and build sandcastles on a beach. He loves music, listening to and playing it. Passionate about humanity and kindness. Trying really hard to retire and travel, another love of my life. And rock climbing is in his blood.

Rachael Oku

Rachael Oku is VP Brand and Communications at PensionBee, leading the online pension provider’s social, content, press and brand teams. She enjoys demystifying pensions and helping people feel confident as they plan for a happy retirement. Rachael’s passionate about achieving diverse representation in financial services; championing the stories of customers in the press and featuring them in PensionBee’s advertising.

Jane Duncan Rogers

Jane is a unique combination of pioneer of Louise Hay’s work in the UK/Europe from the 90’s; 35+ years in coaching/training, and 10+years in the end-of-life planning field. She now writes Embracing Ageing, helping those 60+ to age wackily and well, without fear of the future getting in the way.

art exhibition

Coming soon...

Caroline Cadenza

By day, Caroline Cadenza is as an advertising copywriter, living and working in London. By night (and in any spare moment she can grab) she passionately pursues various side hustles including performance poetry, pottery and painting erotic art – as these things bring her joy.In her writing and art, Caroline likes to play with paradoxes such as sad yet funny, playful yet serious, risqué yet innocent. Her poems may make you giggle, then startle you with a twist or a sting in the tail. Her erotic paintings ought to shock you but they get away with it because of their naive style.Especially commissioned by Advantages of Age, the ‘PIPE AND SLIPPERS’ and ‘ROCKING CHAIR’ series have titles that are traditionally associated with being old. However, the imagery subverts these clichés and challenges the conventional view of how retired people may choose to spend their time. After all, our 'rocking chair years' are what we make them.

Finalists

AofA Facebook Contributor

Ani Wilsher
Nikki Kenward
Jan Pikett
Ivan Pope
Ben Cornish
Sue Hunt
Michael Gresham
Dorothy Fraser
Debbie Golt

Sports Star

Celia Duff @badass_gran1
Michelle Griffith Robinson OLY @michellegriffithrobinson
Ann Dockery
Mick Ward "You're Rubbish at Climbing!"
Dorothy Fraser

Startup School Entrepreneur

Tom Artiss
Mohamed Bennadi
Eury & Nushin
Lisa Johnson
Jean Jackson
Simon Walker
Dorothea Jones
Alan Outten

Style King

Style Queen

Advantages of Age Award
Winners 2023

ANTI-AGEIST ACTIVIST
Jacynth BassettPRO-AGEING ORGANISATION
No Frills Social
Men's ShedDISABILITY ACTIVIST
Penny PepperCLIMATE CHANGE POLLINATOR
Mia MottleySTYLE QUEEN
Sandy PowellSTYLE KING
Jama ElmiDEATH ADVOCATE
The Coffin ClubSTARTUP SCHOOL FOR SENIORS ENTREPRENEUR
Milly and Mima Taylor from the London School of HorticultureINSPIRATIONAL PERSONAL STORY
Louise ButcherAOFA CONTRIBUTOR
Caroline BobbyLATE EMERGING ARTIST/PERFORMER
Nikki KenwardSPORTS GODDESS
Peeps NicholSPORTS GOD
Asanga JudgeWELLNESS CHANGEMAKER
Louise ChunnNON-FICTION BOOK WITH PRO-AGEING MESSAGE
What I Wish People Knew about Dementia by Wendy MitchellDJ
Simon Stanford
Debbie GoltPOET
Wendy Klein
Caroline CadenzaMOST INNOVATIVE SUGGESTION FOR PLACE TO BE BURIED OR CREMATED
Corneilus Muso CrowleyROCK N’ROLL ARTIST WITH THE MOST GLORIOUS GETTING OLDER ATTITUDE
Grace Jones
Patti Smith