Birthday party held in Northamptonshire for 107-year-old former dairy farmer, Connie

Mrs Kirton, who has experienced two world wars and has lived under four monarchs in her lifetime, has spent today enjoying her 107th birthday party surrounded by her friends and family.

The mother-of-two - who now resides at Brampton View Care Home in Chapel Brampton - is five years younger than Britain's oldest woman, Grace Jones.

But Connie's secret to longevity is apparently living a modest and happy life, once with her husband Albert in Pattishall, where they worked together as dairy farmers.

It was only when she turned 75 years old that she decided to throw in the towel on farm life, and as she approached 100 she was still pottering around in her beloved green house, planting tomatoes.

Her son Lionel, who is 82, said her diet has helped her to live a healthy lifestyle and has, in turn, allowed her to celebrate her many telegrams from the Queen.

"She's never drank coffee," he said. "She hates the smell of coffee, but she's a simple eater and looks after herself.

"She's grown a lot of her own vegetables in the garden and her lifestyle was very healthy in many ways, she never smoked."

When she wasn't farming, Connie could be seen at the Pattishall Women's Institute, in which she took an active role for 50 years, and she volunteered for the church choir where her husband sang. She was also very found of knitting before she was diagnosed with dementia.

Before she became poorly she used to fly half way across the globe to see her six grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren in the United States of America and Canada.

"We were born and raised in Pattishall where we went to school and church," Lionel added.

"She taught us fundamentally that us boys should say please and thank you."

"She's been a very good mother. She's raised us right."