Ethel Caterham, 116, Reveals Her One Rule for Outliving Everyone on Earth

Few people receive letters from kings. Fewer still warrant a personal royal visit. And almost no one lives long enough to witness three different British monarchs send birthday wishes to the same address. Ethel Caterham has done all three.

When a care home resident in Surrey, England, woke up on April 30, 2025, she had no idea that day would mark her entrance into an exclusive club with just one member. Following the death of 116-year-old Brazilian nun Inah Canabarro Lucas, Caterham became something she never set out to become. At 115 years and 252 days old, she earned recognition as the oldest living person on Earth.

Her reaction to such milestones has remained consistent over the years. When she turned 115 in August 2024, she expressed bewilderment at the attention, saying she “didn’t know why there was all the fuss.” Yet behind that humble dismissal lies a life story spanning more than a century of world history, personal adventure, love, loss, and an approach to living that researchers and admirers alike find fascinating.

What does it take to outlive everyone else on the planet? According to Caterham, the answer fits into a single sentence.

A Philosophy Forged Over 116 Years

Longevity experts have spent decades searching for patterns among supercentenarians. Some point to genetics. Others emphasize diet, exercise, or geographic factors like the famous “Blue Zones” where people tend to live longer. Caterham offers a different kind of wisdom, one rooted not in biology or nutrition but in temperament.

“Never arguing with anyone, I listen and I do what I like,” she once explained when asked about her secret.

Her philosophy extends beyond conflict avoidance. In an interview with the Salisbury Journal, she elaborated on her approach with advice that carries the weight of lived experience. She encouraged people to say yes to every opportunity because you never know what it will lead to. She advocated for a positive mental attitude. And she recommended having everything in moderation.

During a 2020 interview with BBC Radio Surrey, she described taking everything in her stride, both the highs and the lows. At the time, she was 110 years old and had just survived COVID-19, making her one of the oldest known survivors of the virus that had brought the world to its knees.

Her granddaughter joined her for that interview, a moment that captured something essential about Caterham. Even at 110, she remained engaged, articulate, and willing to share her story with anyone interested enough to listen.

From a Hampshire Village to the Shores of India

Ethel May Collins entered the world on August 21, 1909, in Shipton Bellinger, a small village in Hampshire, England. She grew up in nearby Tidworth, Wiltshire, as the second youngest of eight children. Her older sister Gladys would later live to 104, suggesting that longevity ran in the family’s blood.

But Caterham was never content to stay in one place. At 18, she accepted a position as a nanny for a British military family stationed in India. In 1927, she boarded a ship and spent three weeks crossing the ocean alone, a remarkable act of independence for a young woman in that era.

India left a lasting impression. She later recalled being waited on by servants and experiencing a blend of British traditions and Indian customs. Christmas celebrations mixed with afternoon Tiffin and Tea. For four years, she worked as a nanny both in India and back in England, absorbing experiences that would shape her worldview. Adventure had called to her, and she had answered.

Love at a Dinner Party

In 1931, Ethel attended a dinner party that would change the course of her life. Norman Caterham, a major in the British Army, sat among the guests. Romance blossomed between the young adventurer and the military officer.

Two years later, they married at Salisbury Cathedral, a venue with personal significance. Norman had sung there as a choirboy in his youth. Now he stood at the altar, exchanging vows with a woman who had already traveled halfway around the world on her own.

Norman’s career took them far from Salisbury. He rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Royal Army Pay Corps, and the couple found themselves stationed in Hong Kong and Gibraltar. Military life suited Ethel. She adapted to new environments with the same openness that had carried her to India years before.

In Hong Kong, she refused to remain idle. She established a nursery for both local children and British expats, teaching English, games, and crafts. Her entrepreneurial spirit found expression even thousands of miles from home.

Gibraltar became the birthplace of their family. Ethel and Norman welcomed two daughters, Gem and Anne, before eventually returning to settle in the Surrey area of England.

A Witness to History

Consider what Ethel Caterham has witnessed in her lifetime. She was three years old when the Titanic sank in the North Atlantic. World War One erupted when she was five. She lived through the Russian Revolution, the Great Depression, and World War II.

She watched empires fall and new nations rise. She saw the invention of television, the moon landing, the birth of the internet, and the age of smartphones. Five British monarchs have reigned during her lifetime. Edward VII sat on the throne when she was born, making her his last surviving subject anywhere in the world.

Such a span of history exists in few living memories. When Caterham speaks of the past, she carries firsthand knowledge of events that most people encounter only in textbooks.

Independence Behind the Wheel

Norman Caterham died in 1976, leaving Ethel a widow at 66. Many people might have retreated from the world after such a loss. She did the opposite.

Norman left behind his Triumph Dolomite, and Ethel took the wheel. She continued driving that car until she was 97 years old, maintaining her independence decades after many of her contemporaries had given up their licenses.

Bridge became another passion during her centenarian years. She played with the same competitive spirit that had driven her to board a ship alone at 18. Age slowed her body but never her mind.

Then came 2020 and a microscopic threat that no amount of willpower could deflect. At 110, Caterham contracted COVID-19 during the pandemic’s deadly first wave. Care home residents around the world were dying in alarming numbers. Caterham recovered, adding “oldest known COVID-19 survivor” to her growing list of distinctions.

The Weight of Outliving Everyone

Longevity brings gifts, but it also exacts a price. Ethel Caterham has outlived her husband, her siblings, and both of her daughters. Gem passed away in the early 2000s. Anne died of cancer at 82 in February 2020, just months before her mother would contract COVID-19.

Losing a child at any age devastates a parent. Losing both children while living into your eleventh decade requires a resilience that few can comprehend. Perhaps her philosophy of taking life’s highs and lows in stride developed not despite these losses but because of them.

Today, three granddaughters and five great-grandchildren carry forward the family line. They visit her at Hallmark Lakeview Luxury Care Home in Surrey, where she has spent recent years surrounded by staff who celebrate her milestones with genuine affection.

Royal Recognition

British monarchs send birthday cards to subjects who reach 100. Ethel Caterham has received so many that the tradition has become almost routine. But her 115th birthday brought something different.

King Charles III sent a letter congratulating her on what he called a “truly remarkable milestone.” He conveyed his warmest good wishes and expressed hope that she would enjoy her special day. He noted that he was heartened to learn about her fascinating personal history.

On April 7, 2025, Caterham broke a record that had stood for 32 years. She surpassed the final age of Charlotte Hughes to become the oldest British person ever recorded. Just weeks later, she became the oldest living person in the world.

September 18, 2025, brought an honor reserved for very few. King Charles III visited her in person, a gesture that recognized not just her age but the life she had lived. On August 21, 2025, she had celebrated her 116th birthday, becoming the first British person ever to reach that milestone.

Life at Lakeview

Her current home reflects the contentment she has found in her final chapter. Staff at Hallmark Lakeview renovated a section of the garden and renamed it “Ethel’s Garden” in her honor. She spends time there when the weather permits, enjoying the outdoors that has always brought her peace.

Classical music fills her days. She participates in activities organized by the care home, including a party celebrating the facility’s 10th anniversary. Christmas 2024 saw her wearing a Santa hat among fellow residents, still engaged with the community around her.

“I’ve been all over the world and I’ve ended up in this lovely home, where everyone is falling over themselves for me, giving me everything I want,” she has said of her surroundings.

Why Women Dominate Longevity Records

Caterham’s record fits a larger pattern that researchers have studied for years. Women hold the title of oldest living person far more often than men. According to LongeviQuest, the global authority on human longevity, about 90 percent of all verified supercentenarians are female.

Only one man has held the oldest living person in recent decades. Jiroemon Kimura of Japan claimed the title in December 2012 and kept it until his death in June 2013 at 116 years and 54 days. He remains the oldest man ever recorded.

Ben Meyers, CEO of LongeviQuest, attributes the disparity to both biological and behavioral factors. Women appear to benefit from genetic advantages provided by their second X chromosome, which may protect against certain diseases. Lower rates of risk-taking behavior also contribute to increased life expectancy among women.

Jeanne Calment of France remains the oldest person ever documented. She lived an almost unbelievable 122 years and 164 days before her death in August 1997. Her record has stood for nearly three decades, a benchmark that Caterham would need to survive another six years to approach.

Still Living by Her Own Rules

Mark McKinley, director of records at Guinness World Records, has expressed hope to meet Caterham and present her with an official certificate. LongeviQuest representatives visited her on August 27, 2025, six days after her 116th birthday, to celebrate her longevity.

She never set out to break records. She simply lived according to principles that served her well across 116 years of triumphs and tragedies, adventures and quiet moments, love found, and love lost.

Listen to others. Do what you like. Say yes to opportunity. Keep a positive attitude. Have everything in moderation.

Simple advice, perhaps. But Ethel Caterham has had 116 years to test it. The results speak for themselves.