Ethel Caterham has done something no one else on the planet can claim right now. The Surrey resident has turned 117 years old, officially making her the oldest living person in the world.
Born in 1908, Ethel came into the world three years before the Titanic even set sail. She has lived through two world wars, witnessed the invention of television, the internet, and smartphones, and watched Britain transform beyond recognition across more than a century of history.
But perhaps the most remarkable chapter of her recent years came in 2020, when Ethel survived Covid-19 at the age of 110. At a time when the virus was proving fatal for people decades younger, she pulled through. Staff at her care home in Surrey described it as extraordinary.
Friends, family, and carers gathered to mark the milestone birthday, with well-wishers travelling to celebrate a woman who has quite literally outlived an entire era of human history. She also received the traditional congratulatory card from the King, a gesture now reserved for those reaching 100 and above.
Ethel was born on 21 August 1908 in Whyteleafe, Surrey, back when Edward VII sat on the throne and horse-drawn carriages still shared roads with the earliest motor cars. She grew up during the First World War as a young child, and was already a grown woman when the Second World War broke out in 1939.
Living past 110 puts someone in an extremely rare category known as supercentenarians. Fewer than 100 people in the world are verified to have reached that age at any given time. Reaching 117 is almost unheard of. The oldest person ever recorded was French woman Jeanne Calment, who died in 1997 at the verified age of 122.
Gerontologists, scientists who study ageing, have long been fascinated by what separates people like Ethel from the rest of us. There is rarely one single answer. Genetics plays a role, but so does lifestyle, mental attitude, and sometimes what researchers describe simply as luck. Ethel herself, when asked in previous interviews about her secret, has kept things straightforward, crediting a simple diet and a positive outlook.
Her care home team say she remains engaged with the world around her, enjoys company, and still has a sharp sense of humour. For those who work with her daily, the birthday was a moment to reflect on just how much living one person can pack into a single lifetime.
Britain has a proud record when it comes to longevity. The country maintains some of the most rigorous age verification records in the world, which is part of why British supercentenarians are taken seriously in international longevity research. Ethel’s age has been verified through birth records and documentation going back over a century.
For now, she holds the most remarkable title going. The world’s oldest person, living quietly in Surrey, who was already toddling around before the First World War began.