A great-grandmother set to celebrate her 105th birthday says she attributes her long life to organic food and sensible parents.

And with Julia Carr’s daughter describing her as “Lewis Hamilton on a zimmer frame”, she shows no signs of slowing down just yet.

Having lived through two world wars and 20 different prime ministers, she is one of the oldest people in Kent - and could be the oldest in the Canterbury district.

Julia, who now lives in Stelling Minnis with her daughter Pam and son-in-law John, was born in the throes of the First World War, to parents who owned a huge farm near Castle Howard in north Yorkshire.

And it is to her parents’ values and her outdoorsy youth that she credits her long life.

“My parents were very, very sensible and brought us up to be well-behaved,” she explained.

“The reason I’ve lived a long time is I had sensible parents and a very healthy life, you see, on the farm.

“And of course now you pay extra for organic food. But back then, all our food was organic.

“And we had the beautiful air - it was all very, very healthy.”

Julia worked as a teacher before meeting her husband William Carr.Her daughter Pam said: “My father was in the royal engineers in the Second World War, and was mentioned in dispatches for bravery.

“During the war, mother was on the farm and she had an old bicycle and used to go off getting insurance from the farmers and things, to keep herself occupied. There were lots of airfields around, and a prison camp, so German prisoners of war used to come and work on the farm, and were fed there too because they had terrible food at the camps. So it was an interesting time.”

After William returned from war, the couple had two daughters and relocated to Henley-on-Thames when they retired.

Julia was heavily involved in the church and the WI, and enjoyed playing piano and tennis.

Sadly, William died 36 years ago.

“They absolutely adored each other,” said Pam. “They were very, very close.”

Julia, who now has four grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, moved to Stelling Minnis.

“It’s very nice because I live with my daughter Pam and my son-in-law, who look after me very, very well,” said Julia. “They’re very good to me.”

Pam describes her mother as “very fit”.

Julia regularly speaks on the phone to her other daughter, Margaret, who lives in America, and each week her granddaughter Carmen Louise visits to style her hair and pamper her.

“She dresses herself and washes herself, and walks extremely well,” she said.

“She is like Lewis Hamilton on a zimmer frame!

“She doesn’t watch television any more because she’s very poorly sighted, but she does listen to Classic FM on the radio. That’s what’s kept her going all through lockdown.”

Before the pandemic, Julia would visit the hairdressers and go to lunch with friends, but has not left home since lockdown began in March.

“We had a huge party in a hotel when she was 80, a big party when she was 90, and a big party when she was 100, and she got a telegram from the Queen,” said Pam.

“This is the first year that she’s not been able to go out and celebrate. So we’ll be having a little tea party here, for her 105th birthday.”

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