I love clothes and I only dress to please myself. I remember my mother telling me and my sister to stand still in front of some newspaper so that she could trace and cut out our shape, she would then make the most wonderful dresses. Dresses with smocks, she always dressed us beautifully. I started reciting when I was six years old and my sister was three, but I persevered until I won the Llwyd o'r Bryn memorial prize at the National Eisteddfod in Flint. I wore high heels and a mini blue and white dress. It was like I was destined to wear it because the blue ribbon looked lovely with it!

You go on cruises a lot, what about them appeals to you?

I think it's because it's a whole different world that you can get lost into, and it gives you a chance to dress up again. My cruise clothes are all quite old apart form one. I went down to the Edida J shop last week just to try on a dress, not to buy it, just to try it on. I wasn't going to buy anything. But what did I do? I bought it! On a cruise, if you have five formal evenings, well you have to take everything because even if it says semi formal I dress up for them as well.

What's the history behind this flowery dress?

I wore this on a cruise on a night we were taking photographs, and I said to my sister, "Oh! I'll be able to spot myself in the picture tomorrow because my dress will stand out". Well, I had a shock, I looked about twenty stone and I was 24 years old in one big dress. The Captain's Cocktail Party was the following night and I said to the Captain; "If you need to borrow this dress to hang from the mast you're more than welcome to it". I never wore the dress after that.

How did you meet your husband in Singapore?

I was twenty three when I flew out to Singapore on a VCIO. From the second I arrived I thought I was in paradise. My friend and I were sitting drinking a couple of Singapore Slings when I saw this officer from the army. He was a Captain in his TR2 car wearing his hat and everything; I turned to my friend to ask, "Oh! Who's that?" We met in November and we married in August.

What's the story behind your wedding dress?

When I bought the dress back my mother liked it, but she thought that it didn't have enough of a train, and everybody had a train those days. So, my sister had to unstitch all of the train from her wedding dress so that I could have it on mine. But it was a lovely dress. We were home for a week before we married; we were then flying out to Brunei. My husband was posted to the Sultan's army and that was completely different to Singapore. Three days before we flew out I went to B J Jones and bought six dresses, I still have three of them. I danced with the Sultan and I remember exactly what I was wearing at the time, a red halter neck dress. I went up to him to ask him to dance but he declined saying that he had injured his leg that morning playing polo. So I told him, "Oh! If I have to walk back without having danced with you I'll just die of shame"! He laughed and got up and danced with me for two minutes. So, I've danced with the richest man in the world.

After losing your husband did your style change at all?

After he died, I didn't buy a single article of clothing for three years. But I woke up one morning and felt that a great weight had lifted, it felt like it was worth it to get up that morning. I remember taking my mother shopping and so some pretty clothes, and the said to me; "Anne, I can't believe that haven't bought anything for years". Well, that was it then, I bought three outfits that day and haven't stopped since! I dress for myself and not for anyone else. Whatever I want I'll buy, I don't care what anybody else thinks. If I'm happy in my clothes then I go out happy. I love clothes.