On Air Now

The Chill Out Zone

10:00pm - Midnight

  • 01723 336444

Now Playing

Sad Cafe

Every Day Hurts

Download

British woman Ethel Caterham becomes oldest person in the world at 115

A British woman has officially become the oldest person in the world at the age of 115, according to the Guinness World Records.

Ethel Caterham, who lives in a care home in Surrey, has taken the mantle at 115 years and 252 days, LongeviQuest confirmed.

It comes after the death on 30 April of the previous record holder, Inah Canabarro Lucas, who was a 116-year-old nun from Brazil.

Mrs Caterham sets multiple records - including being the last living person to be born in 1909.

She is also the youngest person to be named the oldest woman in the last 12 years.

Mrs Caterham is also among the oldest survivors of coronavirus, having contracted it at 110 in 2020.

She has outlived her husband Norman, who died in 1976, and both her children Gem and Anne, who died after the millennium.

Asked what her secret to a long life is, she told the Salisbury Journal: "Say yes to every opportunity because you never know what it will lead to. Have a positive mental attitude and have everything in moderation."

Read more from Sky News
English FA will ban transgender women from women's football
Fatal paddleboarding trip instructor's police sacking revealed

Still in good health

Mrs Caterham remains in good health and enjoys sitting in the garden at her care home, which has been named Ethel's Garden in her honour.

She was born in Hampshire on 21 August 1909 - the second-youngest of eight children.

Her older sister Gladys also lived a long life, having died at 104 years and 78 days in 2002.

Mrs Caterham moved to India to work as a nanny when she was 18 and often reminisces about her time there.

When she returned she met her future husband, a British Army major, at a dinner party in 1931 - the pair marrying in Salisbury Cathedral two years later.

They went to live in Hong Kong and Gibraltar when he was posted abroad, with Mrs Caterham returning to her love of children and opening her own nursery during their time in Asia.

On the couple's return to the UK - they settled in Surrey where she gave birth to their daughters. Gem died in the early 2000s and Anne aged 82 in 2020.

Sky News

(c) Sky News 2025: British woman Ethel Caterham becomes oldest person in the world at 115

Did you find this article useful?

This is the Coast is committed to providing a daily local news service for the Yorkshire Coast. We are a small locally owned and operated business which employs professional journalists and reporters. We do not receive any public funding or grants and we are entirely funded by our local commercial operations. We enjoy fabulous support from local businesses who work with us on their advertising and marketing campaigns, but the cost of providing high quality, well researched, fact checked local news coverage is significant.

If you appreciate what This is the Coast does, and would like to help support our journalism, please consider supporting us on a monthly basis today.

A small contribution from all our readers would really help support independent journalism for the Yorkshire Coast.

More from World News

Follow Us

Get Our Apps

Our Apps are now available for iOS, Android and Smart Speakers.

  • Available on the App Store
  • Available on Google Play
  • Just ask Amazon Alexa
  • Available on Roku

Today's Weather

  • Scarborough

    Sunny

    High: 26°C | Low: 10°C

  • Filey

    Sunny

    High: 26°C | Low: 10°C

  • Whitby

    Sunny

    High: 24°C | Low: 10°C

  • Bridlington

    Sunny

    High: 23°C | Low: 10°C

  • Hornsea

    Sunny

    High: 23°C | Low: 11°C

  • Driffield

    Sunny

    High: 25°C | Low: 10°C

News