Ethel Caterham, 115, who was recognized as the world’s oldest person, says the secret to longevity is doing what you love.
Mrs. Caterham, born in 1909, became the first British woman to hold the title of the world’s oldest person since 1987, when the record was held by 114-year-old Anna Williams.
The research company LongeviQuest, which verifies ages for Guinness World Records, awarded the title to Ethel Caterham.
Ethel Caterham, who was born during King Edward VII’s reign, received the honor after the previous oldest person—a Brazilian nun named Ina Canabarro Lucas—died on April 30 of this year at the age of 116 years and 326 days.
Currently, Mrs. Caterham lives in a nursing home in Lightwater, Surrey. She credits her longevity to an optimistic outlook on life. “I took everything in stride, the ups and downs,” the record-holder said. She added that she follows a simple rule: “never arguing with anyone.” “I do what I like,” Ethel Caterham said.
More About the Oldest Person on the Planet
Ethel Caterham was born in the village of Shipton Bellinger in southern England (Hampshire) on August 21, 1909. She was one of eight children. At 18, she went to India to work as a nanny for a family and returned to Britain three years later. In 1931, she met her future husband, a British Army lieutenant colonel named Norman Caterham.
The couple married in 1933 at Salisbury Cathedral, as reported by The Guardian. For a time, they lived in Hong Kong, where Ethel opened a nursery.
The couple had two daughters. For most of their lives, Ethel and Norman lived in Britain. Mrs. Caterham’s husband died in 1976.
She has lived in Surrey for the past 50 years. She has three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. “I’ve traveled the world and ended up in this wonderful home, where everyone loves me and gives me everything I want,” she said.
