Teenager Jennie is now four

Jennie Bradshaw is one of Shropshire’s most famous four year olds - yet she has been appearing in the Shropshire Star for the past 16 years.The Bridgnorth Endowed School pupil officially celebrates her fourth birthday today but her first time in the spotlight was on March 2, 1992, when her mother Janet was featured with other mums who had given birth to little bundles of joy on February 29 of that year at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.

Jennie had joined the very special club of leap year babies. Then she stepped back into the limelight four years later at Morville Nursery as she blew out the candles on her fourth - and first - birthday cake.

In 2000 she made the most of being both eight and two at the same time while she jumped for joy in 2004 when leap year arrived again and she could actually celebrate her real birthday.

Now 16 - or four - Jennie has almost got used to the attention when her special day rolls around, even though she admits that leaping for the cameras is not as much fun when you’re a teenager.

But she is looking forward to embracing her leap year origins with a fancy-dress party planned for today with the theme of dressing like a four-year-old.

“Luckily I do get to celebrate on both February 28 and March 1 when it’s not a leap year so I get a kind of double birthday but I still really look forward to it being my actual birthday,” said Jennie.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the county, Norman Jones of Hook-a-Gate, near Shrewsbury, will be counting up the years and dividing by four today as he marks both his 68th - and 17th - milestone.

The businessman is planning to celebrate by getting together with his family and he is looking forward to some extra special festivities to mark the big day.

Norman is also a big fan of getting two birthday celebrations in every year.

His wife Mary said he normally tried to get the family to celebrate both on February 28 and March 1.

But he did feel a little more special every four years when he got to have his “proper” birthday.

“I think he does enjoy the leap year just that little bit more because it is his actual birthday but he makes the most of it during other years too,” added Mary.

Norman said he had never lost out on presents or best wishes from family and friends because of his leap year birthday adding that he often got more attention thanks to being born on February 29.