What does one usually want for their birthday? A luxurious car? A swanky new watch? Or maybe a nice getaway to somewhere exotic? Well, Gladys Hooper asked for something more surprising; she wished to celebrate with a slice of cake, new teeth, and a nice hot cuppa.
Gladys Hooper is Britain's oldest person who recently turned 113 years “young”. The former concert pianist celebrated her birthday with her friends and family at her nursing home in Ryde, Isle of Wight. She has witnessed many landmark historical events in her lifetime, and incidentally, she was born in 1903, the same year in which the Wright brothers invented the first successful aeroplane.
Although she has turned a remarkable 113 years-of-age, she says she doesn't “feel very different to when I was 75”.
Her 85-year-old son, Derek Hermiston, a retired pilot shared, “I am very proud of her, I have known her for quite a long time and I have seen her life when she was young, when she was a very agile person and always the centre of parties. She was a great pianist, I remember going to the Dorchester Hotel in London a few times where she was playing. Now we see her hands moving up and down and I think she dreams quite a lot of her piano days. I think she has melodies going through her head which is rather nice for her and those melodies bring back very happy memories.”
May Gladys Hooper have a very happy 113th birthday, plus many more to come.
