They say that home is where the heart is, and for Elsie Allcock, her heart has remained in the same place for more than a century.
Allcock was born in a two-bed property in Huthwaite, Nottinghamshire, toward the end of World War I in 1918. Once her parents died, she and her late husband Bill purchased the terraced home for £250 (about $1,192.50 at that time’s conversion rate), which, as she says in an interview with the BBC, was a “lot of money” back then. At that point, the house had no electricity—there was a single gas light in the front room, in which the family deposited pennies in order to operate it.
“You put one penny in,” Allcock recalls. “I mean, if you haven’t got a penny, you haven’t got no light.”
In 2023, it was reported that Allcock lived with her then 76-year-old son, Raymond. The pair spent their days tending to their flourishing garden and stated that they had no intentions of leaving the home, an unsurprising conclusion, considering the decades of memories built within its walls. Throughout her 107 years living in Nottinghamshire, Allcock has witnessed both World Wars, five monarchs, and 23 British prime ministers. But her experiences aren’t simply limited to politics or world events—she has also lived through the birth of two children, six grandchildren, and over 30 great-grandchildren.
Nowadays, Allcock spends her days completing jigsaw puzzles and word searches. In the past, she was an avid knitter, but after developing arthritis in her hands, she has had to abandon the hobby.
“Her mother died when she was 14 and she stayed home to look after her father who was in his 70s and she cleaned houses for pocket money,” Raymond told the Express in a 2023 interview. “She’s got bad feet and a bad shoulder and ears, but apart from that, she’s perfect.”
Allcock’s story has gained international attention throughout the years, something that the centenarian feels confused about. “I don’t know why they are interested,” she admits, “because I’m not important. I haven’t done anything important.”
Despite her uncertainty of the attention and intrigue, Allcock’s remarkable life and enduring commitment to the home in which she was born has captivated thousands of people on social media, where she’s gone viral several times.
“I’ve never left and I won’t,” Allcock says. “They’ll have to take me from here. No, I shall never leave.”
107-year-old Elsie Allcock has lived in the same two-bed property in Huthwaite, Nottinghamshire, since her birth in 1918.
Sources: ‘I’ve lived in the same house for 105 years’; Woman has lived in the same house for almost 105 years – and has no plans to go anywhere
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