World’s Oldest Person Ethel Caterham Celebrates Her 117th Birthday
By Community Correspondent
Ethel Caterham, the world’s oldest living person, is celebrating her 117th birthday in Surrey after a remarkable year that has included meeting King Charles and experiencing a number of memorable firsts.
Born on 21 August 1909, Mrs Caterham has now lived through six British monarchs and two world wars. She is spending her birthday with family and friends at Hallmark Lakeview Care Home in Lightwater, Surrey.
Among the highlights of her 117th year was a meeting with King Charles III, who visited her at the care home in September 2025, shortly after her 116th birthday.
During the encounter, Mrs Caterham recalled seeing Charles's investiture as Prince of Wales in 1969, when he was 21.
She told Sky News at the time: “All the girls were in love with you and wanted to marry you.”
The meeting was one of several unusual experiences during a year Mrs Caterham has described as being full of firsts. She has also recently spoken about another memorable experience – stroking a llama.
A life spanning more than a century
Mrs Caterham was born in Hampshire during the reign of Edward VII and is now the last surviving subject born during his reign.
She became the world's oldest living person in April 2025, following the death of Brazilian nun Sister Inah Canabarro Lucas at the age of 116. Guinness World Records also recognises Mrs Caterham as the world's oldest living woman.
Her life has taken her well beyond the UK.
She spent time in India as a young woman, working as an au pair for a military family, and later lived in Gibraltar and Hong Kong with her husband, former army lieutenant colonel Norman Caterham.
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While in Hong Kong, she established a nursery and raised her two daughters. Her husband died in 1976, while both of her daughters have also since died.
Mrs Caterham has also remained remarkably active throughout her long life. She drove until the age of 97 and continued playing contract bridge well into her later years. She survived Covid-19 at the age of 110.
Looking ahead at 117
For her latest birthday, Mrs Caterham is celebrating privately with those closest to her.
In a message marking the occasion, she said she had enjoyed a year filled with new experiences and was looking forward to what the future might hold.
While she holds the title of world's oldest living person, Mrs Caterham has not yet surpassed the record for the longest-lived person ever verified.
That record belongs to France's Jeanne Calment, who died in 1997 aged 122 years and 164 days.
At 117, however, Mrs Caterham remains an extraordinary living link to more than a century of history – and has plenty of reason to celebrate another remarkable milestone.
