British woman Ethel Caterham, officially recognized as the world’s oldest living person, has celebrated her 117th birthday.Caterham marked the milestone on Aug. 21 with family and friends at her care home in Surrey, England. She was born on Aug. 21, 1909, in Hampshire.Guinness World Records said Caterham has now become the first British person ever verified to reach the age of 117.

She became the world’s oldest living person in April 2025 following the death of Brazilian nun Inah Canabarro Lucas at the age of 116.

Caterham has lived through both world wars and, at the age of 110, recovered from COVID-19. She also travelled to India alone at the age of 18 in 1927, where she worked as a nanny for a British family.Despite her remarkable longevity, Caterham is still several years short of the all-time verified longevity record. Frenchwoman Jeanne Calment lived to 122 years and 164 days.