The World's Oldest Living Person Has One Rule for a Long Life: Never Argue

Ethel Caterham has outlived her husband, both of her daughters, and an entire century of history, from the Titanic to a pandemic. Ask her the secret, and she'll tell you it isn't complicated at all.

Ethel Caterham, recognized by Guinness World Records as both the world’s oldest living person and world’s oldest living woman, has lived through two world wars, outlived her husband and two daughters, and met a king. When asked about the secret to her longevity, her answer was unexpected: don't argue.

"Never arguing with anyone, I listen and I do what I like," Caterham has said of her approach to a long life.

Caterham first claimed the title of world's oldest living person last year, after Brazilian nun Inah Canabarro Lucas died at 116.

On August 21, 2026, she turned 117 and marked the milestone with a message shared through ABC News. She reflected on a year that included holding hands with King Charles III and stroking a llama.

"I've had a lovely day celebrating with my family and friends, and I look forward to seeing what next year brings," she said.

Born in the village of Shipton Bellinger in southern England on August 21, 1909, five years before the outbreak of World War I, Caterham was the second youngest of eight siblings, one of whom lived to 104.

At 18, she traveled to India to work as a nanny for a British family. She stayed there for three years before returning home.

She met her husband, Norman, a major in the British Army, at a dinner party in 1931. Their marriage took them to postings in Hong Kong and Gibraltar before they settled back in the U.K. and raised two daughters, Gem and Anne.

Norman died in 1976, and Caterham has since outlived both of her children as well. Today, she is a grandmother of three and great-grandmother of five.

Before her decades of travel and family life, Caterham worked as a nanny and ran a nursery. She now lives at a care home in Surrey, England, where she has resided for years

Guinness World Records marked her most recent birthday with its own message of celebration, noting that holding the title for both oldest living person and oldest living woman is "certainly something to celebrate."

In September 2025, King Charles III paid her a visit in her care home in Lightwater, Surrey, after she said she would swap a quiet birthday celebration for a chance to meet him weeks earlier.

During the royal's visit, she recalled watching his 1969 investiture as Prince of Wales. She also teased him about his younger years, saying, "all the girls were in love with you and wanted to marry you."

Caterham is believed to be the last surviving subject of King Edward VII, a living link to an era most people only read about in history books. She continued driving until she was 97.