‘It wasn’t tough at all’: Leaving New Zealand for a later-life OE in London

When her husband was made redundant at age 61, Annemarie Rawson decided she’d had enough of letting companies dictate their lives.

“There would have been very little chance of him being employed in a similar role and at a similar pay scale (in New Zealand),” the 65-year-old from Havelock North said. “I was so sick of other people holding the strings of our lives, and us being the puppets dancing to the company tune. It was time to take a risk and have an adventure.”

Annemarie and her husband Steve were strangers to neither risk nor adventure, having quit their corporate jobs in their fifties to work as estate managers in southwest France. While the experience wasn’t always as dreamy as one might imagine – they were sacked from their first job – it showed them that, while the immigration rules in many countries’ say otherwise, you don’t have to be under 35 to do an OE.

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With Steve’s British passport, they decided to up sticks to London, willing to take the risk that, aged 60 and 61 at the time, they might struggle to find the work they would ultimately need to survive in the UK capital.

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“Some friends thought us nuts,” Rawson said. “Others said ‘here she goes again!’. One son lives in London so he was delighted we were on our way, and the other in Adelaide said ‘go for it’.”

If they didn’t find jobs, Rawson said they would have had to dip into their retirement fund or return to New Zealand, but they felt they would find it just as hard, if not harder, to find work in Aotearoa.

Another financial risk lay in the unfavourable exchange rate, which effectively halved their spending capacity.

Having visited London a few times before, they didn’t feel as though they were venturing into completely unfamiliar territory, but they had never heard of the suburb they ended up settling in until a friend mentioned she had a flat there available to rent.

Located on the banks of the River Thames, Teddington is a leafy, well-to-do suburb named the best place to live in London in a 2021 Sunday Times article.

Rawson believes it deserves the accolade, saying “the high street is fabulous, sporting great boutiques, cafes, restaurants, a hardware store, three supermarkets and about four pubs”.

Bushy Park, the second largest of London’s eight royal parks, is another draw with its ancient trees, 17th century water gardens and hundreds of red and fallow deer, and Hampton Court Palace, the sprawling baroque building once home to Henry VIII and his wives, lies just beyond it.

Moving into a flat near Teddington Lock, the couple set themselves up with a bank account, National Insurance numbers, mobile phones, broadband internet and Oyster 60+ cards, which entitled them to free travel within London, within a fortnight.

Finding work, however, proved much more of a challenge. Steve enrolled in fire risk assessment courses, hoping to move into that line of work, but the Grenfell Tower tragedy effectively made it impossible. After the fire in the 23-storey block of flats, which killed 72 people, fire risk assessment companies were wary of hiring newly qualified assessors and, as Rawson said, “that door closed”.

Rawson landed an interview for a job as a dental receptionist within a week of their move to Teddington, but quickly realised she didn’t want to be tied to a nine to five job.

“Already I’d experienced the freedom of being able to get out and explore when I wanted, but we did need to earn money to pay all our expenses, so had to find a balance.”

When a new friend told them about the Nextdoor website, which is similar to New Zealand’s Neighbourly, they advertised themselves on it as project managers able to help out with tasks such as cleaning, de-cluttering, gardening, cooking and administration.

“We were inundated with responses,” Rawson said. “I took on the project management of a flat upgrade in Shepherd’s Bush as well as three cleaning clients – all of whom had beautiful, clean and tidy homes. I was fussy!

“Steve chose a de-cluttering project with one company and did that part-time along with gardening work until he was successful in getting a full-time job with a local conference company.”

When Rawson took on administrative work for an author and a charity, her cleaning jobs eventually petered out.

“It all worked out really well and we both enjoyed the jobs we did,” she said.

Despite the English reputation for reserve, the couple quickly formed firm friendships. Rawson made her first new friend after visiting a nearby B&B to see if it would be suitable for family and friends to stay at.

“The woman Anne who ran it asked me to stay and have coffee with her – and that was the start. We became fabulous friends and did theatre, galleries, gardens and trips into the countryside with her and husband, Richard.

“Richard then took Steve with him to his regular Monday evening drinks and introduced him to all his mates there. Steve loved it. In fact, Anne and Richard have just been out from London and stayed with us as part of their New Zealand tour.”

Rawson also befriended a client, three people from the French classes she enrolled in, and several from her pilates class after asking if anyone would like to join her for a coffee.

“That first time two came then, after that, there were often six of us and we always had a great time. That snowballed into meeting for drinks, going to a movie or having a walk… It is you that has to make the effort and the initial contact. People won’t come to you.”

Asked what she most enjoyed about life in London, Rawson mentioned the “amazing green spaces and parks”, galleries, museums, theatres, and the Thames Path, which passes towns, villages and “fabulous pubs” on its nearly 300km route to the Cotswolds.

She was also impressed by a transport system so efficient she rarely had to wait more than 10 minutes for a bus, train or tube connection, the “endless history wherever you turn”, and easy access to Europe.

Rawson said there was nothing at all tough about life there, particularly as they were able to see their son regularly.

“I don’t remember ever feeling lonely or homesick. Maybe one tough aspect could be said of having to watch our pennies until we got work, but I’d planned and allowed for a few months without an income.”

A standout experience was watching New Zealand play England in the final of the 2019 Cricket World Cup at Lord’s after a friend of their son helped them get tickets. With New Zealand ahead as the afternoon progressed, Rawson said the tension in the crowd was palpable.

“All the cheering left me with a roar in my ears. It was nail-biting stuff when the score came to a draw and the match had to go on to the super over. I felt sick. Steve was hoarse from yelling and could hardly speak. People were clutching each other; some covering their eyes in disbelief. But when Buttler hit the stumps and Guptill failed to make the crease, the crowd erupted! I have never witnessed such a spectacle. The air was electric.

“To feel all that emotion and passion, on both sides, left me wrung out! All around us men were crying their eyes out with the sheer joy of winning, people were kissing and hugging each other, jumping up and down, and Steve and I got gathered up and hugged and kissed too. The entire day was an experience never to be had again and we soaked up every minute of it.”

Since returning to New Zealand, Rawson has written a book about their experiences called Late Life Adventures in London and Beyond – a follow-up to her two books about their time in France, My French Platter and My French Platter Replenished.

They plan to return to the UK and Europe later this year, believing later-life OEs can be even better than those done in one’s twenties or thirties.

“By 60, you’ve had lots of life experiences and most likely developed an interest in travel, art, music, theatre and a different way of living. You’re most likely to be more financially stable as well; the children have left home and you’re free to embrace a new and exciting life. You won’t want to be out partying or in the pubs every night, but will go looking for more cultural activities!”

Annemarie Rawson’s advice for those contemplating a later-life London OE

• Do you hold a British passport? What would you be eligible for?
• Be organised and make check-off lists.
• Make sure you have your finances in order and that there’s an “emergency fund” in case you need to return to New Zealand in a hurry.
• Rent out your home; do not sell it. If you plan to stay away forever, make that decision a couple of years down the track. If you sell before you set out, you will find it incredibly difficult to get back into the same housing market when you return from your OE.
• Be warm and friendly and open to new experiences and people coming into your life.
• Have a Plan B in case it all turns to custard. But if you’ve done your homework, it shouldn’t.

Late Life Adventures in London and Beyond is available at Wardini Books in Havelock North or from Amazon Books online.