Old age? Bring it on, say the world’s coolest pensioners

The Dalai Lama, Wole Soyinka, Harvey Keitel, Jane Fonda and Marianne Fassler have this in common: they are ageing with a whole lot of attitude

There's an old guy I see walking around our neighbourhood. He's tall, with thick grey hair tied back and he always wears good, faded denims and colourful shirts with a small flower print. He looks so self-contained and pensive that I never stop him to chat.

So I don't know what his life philosophy is, but to me he represents the quintessential Cool Oldster - fit and healthy, singular and independent, with a smooth dress sense.

The Cool Oldster was exemplified by Leonard Cohen (pictured), with his deep lyrics and dapper headgear . When he died in November 2016 at the age of 82, he was still relevant, still adored by millions .

Cool Oldsters have probably always existed, but with everyone ageing more slowly and living longer, there's more focus on the over-50s.

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Paulo Sorrentino, 46, who wrote and directed the 2015 film Youth, says most people don't wonder whether older people think about the future, but he figured they probably did. He explores the topic in the film, which stars Michael Caine, 83, and Harvey Keitel, 77.

Caine's character, Fred Ballinger, a retired orchestra conductor, reckons the future is worth giving a go, but the Keitel character, a movie director, takes it hard when his lead actress leaves his project for a trashy TV series.

Jane Fonda, 78, plays the feisty diva. She told the Guardian in 2015 that plastic surgery had "bought me a decade". Writer Catherine Shoard, describing Fonda as "channelling Gran as styled by Cartier", says Fonda told her: "I'm very youthful. I have passion. I have curiosity. I've always had a lot of energy. I have a fake hip, knee, thumb; more metal in me than a bionic woman, but I can still do Pilates."

Fonda has always been an activist, and takes her role as an example for other women seriously, speaking out against sexual abuse.

"Looking at age from the outside is so scary," said Fonda . "But when you're inside age ... it isn't scary at all.

"You need maturity to learn this, but it's important to figure out what you need to do for yourself every day to decompress. I meditate. And I always get eight hours' sleep."

No amount of surgery can replace that - something the Cool Oldster instinctively knows. Nor can it replace the courage to be yourself and conquer fear.

"I have always tried to follow the maxim of making fear your friend," Keitel told Huffpost Entertainment last year. "The thing you fear most, you have to learn how to accommodate that, live within it."

He and Caine have no shortage of roles playing aged reprobates as more moviemakers dig for gold in the surprising lives of unconventional oldsters.

Caine will be seen later this year with Alan Arkin, 82, and Morgan Freeman, 79, in Going in Style, directed by Zach Braff.

block_quotes_start I value my physical fitness, work hard at my mental fitness and keep up with my interests outside of fashion

When older people contemplate the future it is often money they think about, and Braff's caper features three old guys who, tired of sitting in the park feeding pigeons and getting by on meagre social pensions, plan a bank heist.

What makes Caine, Freeman, Keitel and Arkin Cool Oldsters rather than just ordinary ones? In Caine's case, the voice helps. When he says in the opening line ofYouth, "You can't smoke here", the voice is velvety, calmly assured. It's also the many roles he's played, from the feckless ladies' man in Alfie (1966) to the mischievous Joe in Going in Style.

Keitel and Freeman have a roguish allure and Arkin's good looks are well preserved, but all these oldsters have great CVs and their slick portrayals of zany, up-for-anything characters are what earn them extra points in the hipness stakes.

A little humility goes a long way if you want to be cool on the other side of 50. Braff, 41, says the three Hollywood icons had been "extraordinarily supportive. They really wanted me to not be intimidated by their legendary status and really direct them."

Humility is what gets Sally Field's shy character welcomed into the younger fold in Hello, My Name is Doris. Also, her funky vintage clothes and a fib - she turns up at an electro-pop concert, professing to be a huge fan, to grab the attention of a young male colleague.

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Reflecting on the changing perceptions about ageing, Field, 70, told US radio station NPR that the film "looks at age. I mean, what is age? It looks at transitioning."

Decent roles dwindle for women as they get on, but Field, lucky to be working consistently, said: "I've gathered strength behind my years, I owned them, I've earned them, I've deserved them, I have a right to have them. And I don't like my neck, I don't like a lot of things but it's OK, it's OK.

"Behind my years I have value that doesn't come when you're 50 or 40 or 30 or 20, it doesn't come until you've been in that saddle for a number of years."

Cool Oldsters such as Field seem to be enjoying their golden years. Not having money worries no doubt helps. As South African fashion designer Marianne Fassler told the Legacy Project: "Lack of money is very debilitating and often self-inflicted. Make sure you have resources, don't spend more than you earn and watch your balance every single day. Be financially aware. It will set you free from fear."

Born in Johannesburg in 1949, Fassler has developed a style that celebrates Africa and exemplifies her youthful, avant garde persona - she is one of the few people in the world whose kitchen stools are upholstered in leopard print.

block_quotes_start For fun and peace of mind I spend as much time as I can in the Hhohho valley in Swaziland, go for long walks with the dogs, read and write block_quotes_end

When I called her shop, Leopard Frock, her assistant said she was in Ethiopia - a dead cool destination right now. She didn't reply to my e-mails, perhaps because they asked what it felt like to be a Cool Oldster. Many Cool Oldsters don't want to be associated with the word "old"; they still feel young, bursting with fresh ideas, nowhere near the end of this perplexing, exciting, up-and-down thing called life.

But behind Fassler's impish image is a serious, savvy woman who knows that to ensure the creative muse stays with her, she has to take care of herself.

"I value my physical fitness, work hard at my mental fitness and keep up with my interests outside of fashion," she told the Legacy Project.

"I love contemporary art, I read a lot, I engage in current affairs and politics, I surround myself with interesting people and things. I make sure that my life is culturally enriched and it all adds up to a rich and varied source of inspiration for my work."

Savvy Cool Oldsters surround themselves with positive people. "The nature of my work is such that I cannot work alone. I have to work with a team, and the secret is to ignite love and passion in my team," said Fassler.

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Having the right spouse helps too. South African-born actor Sean Taylor, who has just turned 61, has for 13 years been married to double Oscar nominee Jacki Weaver, 69. Taylor, who is waiting for a US green card, has been posting grumpy comments on Facebook about the Trump victory but knows how to de-stress. "For fun and peace of mind I spend as much time as I can in the Hhohho valley in Swaziland, go for long walks with the dogs, read and write."

Another South African Cool Oldster brimming with passion and youthful energy is author, poet and playwright Gcina Mhlophe, 58. Nominated as one of the "influential and inspirational" women in the BBC's 100 Women 2016 list, she's received honorary degrees for literature from several universities, published dozens of books and performs all over the world.

Her inspiration comes from an ancient source: "I am immensely grateful to be bathing in the timeless river of ancestral stories."

Cool Oldsters have more fun. When I grow up I want to be one.