THE Darlington U3A celebrated its 25th anniversary on Thursday with a commemoration lunch and noted how it had grown from six founding members to an organisation 300-strong with an activity going on nearly every day.

The lunch, in the Mercure King's Hotel, was addressed by chairman Kathy LeRoy, the only survivor of the six. She told how the University of the Third Age started in France in 1973 to encourage retired people to keep learning. It spread to Britain in the early 1980s, and to Darlington in 1992 when the first proper meeting was held in Walkington House, Vane Terrace, that July.

"We felt there was a gap for like-minded people to meet, socialise and to keep their minds active," she said. "It really is all about friendship."

The Darlington U3A runs groups on a variety of subjects from line dancing to literature, with Tai Chi being the newest addition. Anyone interested in finding out more is invited to an open morning from 10am in Bondgate Methodist Church Hall on August 11.

More than 100 members attended the lunch, where the guest speaker was The Northern Echo's Chris Lloyd, who has addressed the group on ten occasions over the years.