Margaret gets down to the Mt Pleasant Bridge Club every Friday for a game. Photo: Geoff Sloan

Margaret Coghill turned 103 in May, but she still keeps her mind sharp with a weekly game of bridge.

Friday has been “bridge day” for Margaret for the past 25 years, ever since she joined the Mt Pleasant Bridge Club.

She is the club’s oldest member, followed by Ronnie Gudgeon, 97, and Ina Drury, 96.

She gave up driving just two years ago, at age 101, and now relies on fellow members to take her from her South Brighton home to the Mt Pleasant Yacht Club for her weekly game.

Margaret first learned bridge in 1975 while living in Wellington and working as a shorthand reporter in Parliament.

A friend gave her a book on how to play, and with no prior knowledge, she joined lessons at the Karori Bridge Club.

“I went to them, learnt the bidding and how to play and gradually improved,” she said.

She played in club tournaments in Wellington, but never won any. Before her time in Parliament, Margaret worked as a shorthand typist for the Forest Service in Christchurch, where she has spent most of her life.

​Margaret Coghill is at the Mt Pleasant Bridge Club for a game every Friday for the last 25 years. Photo: Geoff Sloan

She retired from her position in Parliament in 1983 and decided to move back to Christchurch.

Margaret joined the Christchurch Bridge Club, and later transferred to Mt Pleasant in about 2000 after being invited by a friend to partner with her.

“They’re a very nice crowd of people, they’re a friendly lot,” she said.

Margaret Coghill keeps her mind sharp with a weekly game of bridge. Photo: Geoff Sloan

Margaret prefers Mt Pleasant’s smaller club atmosphere which allows her to get to know everyone. She never married and has no family left, so the social side of the game is valuable.

Her competitive days are behind her, but she still enjoys trying to win.

“Sometimes, I’m a bit rash with my bidding, I’m a bit of a gambler.”

Experience has taught her that in bridge, keeping tricks up your sleeve is pointless – success comes from understanding card values and bidding strategy.

Margaret revels in the challenging nature of the game and says it helps keep her brain working.

“You really have to learn to play and to know what you’re doing,” she said.

Margaret used to play golf as a physical activity, but admitted she was not much good.

When asked her secret to a long life, she joked: “The reason I’ve gotten to 103 is because I haven’t died.”

The Mt Pleasant Bridge Club will celebrate its 50th anniversary on August 29, an event Margaret says she is looking forward to, and she has no plans to put down her cards any time soon.