GREAT grandchildren have flown over from Australia to help former farmer Frank Kay celebrate his 100th birthday.

Frank toasted the milestone with family, friends and fellow villagers in Sessay near Thirsk where he has lived all his life.

Born on July 29, 1919 at Hutton Sessay, he left school at 14 and worked on the family farm.

When his grandfather died, the farm passed to Frank's father who paid him 1 shilling per week. The farm was a mix of arable crops and animals, cows, pigs, chickens. Between the wars, there was very little mechanisation on farms, with horses and manual labour the order of the day. Lunch was taken when the Flying Scotsman train went past on the East Coast main line at 11:55am every day.

When World War Two broke out he signed up to join the army but was kept out because farming was a reserved occupation, so he became a founding member of the Sessay Home Guard.

During the war, Mary Randall was evacuated from Gateshead and worked as a teacher at Sessay school. She met Frank and they were married in 1944, going on to celebrate more than 60 years of marriage until Mary died in 2011.

They had two children, Maureen and David.

After the war, the family acquired a tractor for the farm as part of the Lease Lend deal with the USA. The farm later acquired a combine harvester but not before Frank’s father died at the age of 69 so the farm passed to Frank.

In the late 1960’s, production on the farm swung round to fruit production eventually becoming one of the first farms in North Yorkshire to introduce Pick Your Own fruit which proved successful. Eventually the farm had to diversify in to the area of pleasure fishing and now operates as The Oaks Lakes Fishing Complex and Caravan Park.

Frank's son David is semi retired and Frank’s grandson Thomas has taken over the reins.

Frank was a warden at St. Cuthbert’s Church, Sessay, for 40 years, and was active in the village cricket and football teams and a founder member of the Sessay Village Hall and Sessay Bowls Club. In 2015, he received the Award of the Freedom of the Parish from the Sessay and Hutton Sessay Parish Council. His son-in-law Anthony Russell said he is a lifelong supporter of Middlesbrough Football Club and Yorkshire Cricket Club.

Frank has four grandchildren and eight great grandchildren.

Grandson Sam, his partner Louise and their two children, Frank’s great granddaughters, Lucy, aged15, and 12-year-old Jessica flew from Brisbane, Australia, to join in the celebrations.