The world’s oldest potted plant is a prickly cycad (Encephalartos altensteinii), which was brought from South Africa to the UK and planted in 1775. The cycad is currently on display in the Palm House, Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew, Surrey, UK . These tree-fern like Cycads are often called ‘living fossils’ as they are amongst the oldest surviving species of plants; it is known that they were growing over 200 million years ago during the Permian era. Cycads are dioecious meaning their male and female reproductive Continue reading →

The oldest known pinned insect specimen, still on its original pin, is a Bath white butterfly (Pontia daplidice), which was collected near Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire in May 1702. The specimen was donated to the Hope Entomological Collections of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, Oxford, UK in 1906 and has remained there ever since. Further info from Oxford: The Bath white comes from the Mediterranean and North Africa, and rarely visits the UK. Although there are older insect remains in existence, such as those recovered Continue reading →

The oldest picture postcard in the world is a postcard sent by Theodore Hook Esq. from Fulham, London, UK to himself in 1840. The illustration shows a coloured caricature of Post Office scribes seated around an enormous inkwell. The postcard may also be the most expensive, selling in March 2002 for £31,750 to collector Eugene Gomberg, of Riga, Latvia, in a telephone bid at the London Stamp Exchange auction. It is the only postcard to have a Penny Black stamp. Before this postcard was discovered Continue reading →

Cambridge University Press is the oldest printing and publishing house in the world. It was founded on a royal charter granted to the University by Henry VIII in 1534 and has been operating continuously as a printer and publisher since the first Press book was printed in 1584. Since 1534, books under Cambridge University’s imprint have appeared each and every year, and the Press has grown to become one of the largest academic and educational publishers in the world, publishing over 2,000 books and 150 Continue reading →

The oldest British Queen is Queen Elizabeth II (UK, b. 21 April 1926), who took the record from her great, great grandmother, Queen Victoria (1819-1901), on 21 December 2007 aged 81 years 244 days. Offically, Queen Elizabeth surpassed Queen Victoria at 5 pm GMT on 20 December 2007 (taking into account Queen Victoria’s hour of birth and death). I went with the next day, otherwise would be an equal holder. If still on the throne, Queen Elizabeth will surpass Queen Victoria’s record for the longest Continue reading →

Professional model Daphne Selfe (UK, b. 1 July 1928) of Baldock, Hertfordshire, UK, was a professional model as of 22 April 2014, aged 85 years 295 days. Her modelling career spans more than 60 years and includes appearances for the likes of Dolce & Gabbana, Gap, Nivea, Olay, Tata-Naka and Michiko Koshino. As well as featuring in Vogue and Marie Claire, Mrs Selfe has been photographed by some of the most renowned fashion photographers, including Mario Testino, Nick Knight, and David Bailey.

Lundy Island, situated off the north Devon coast, UK, had its own postal service launched on 1 November 1929 by Martin Coles Harman (UK), then-owner of the island. The private postal service came about after the General Post Office left the island in 1927 after 50 years. For the next two years Harman ferried the post to mainland Britian, launching the puffin post to cut his costs (Lundy is the Old Norse word for puffin). The stamps all feature a puffin or puffins and come Continue reading →

The oldest soldier to enlist in the Great War was William John Paxton (b. London, UK, 23 April 1846, d. London, UK, 29 April 1927), a bricklayer who enlisted with the London Regiment on 21 October 1914 at the age of 68 and was discharged on 19 July 1916 for health reasons. Having declared on his application that he was 48 years old and that his next of kin was his brother, he in fact had four children and lived a few streets away from Continue reading →

The oldest lollipop lady (or crossing guard) in the world is Bridie Dillon who was born on 16 July 1920 and who works as a lollipop lady in Camden, London, UK. She has been awarded the Good Citizen Award from Camden Council, London in 2001.

The oldest road race is the Red Hose 5 Mile Race which has been held annually in Carnwath, South Lanarkshire, UK since 1508. The requirement to hold the race is laid down by charter. Permission must be obtained from the Crown in order to not hold the race. This has only been done during the two World Wars, in 1926 (due to the General Strike, in 1952 and 2001 due to foot and mouth disease. The race is so called because the winner’s prize was Continue reading →