Gladys Banks Marks 108th Birthday on Christmas Day

A Kent village community gathered to honor a remarkable individual born on Christmas Day. Gladys Banks, known locally as “the Queen of Borough Green,” reached her 108th birthday today, celebrating with a street party held in her honor. Residents convened on November 30th, coinciding with their Christmas lights switch-on event, in the street adjacent to Gladys’ front garden for an early celebration. They presented her with a birthday cake, champagne, and music, as the sizable gathering sang “Happy Birthday.” Gladys, an admirer of Abba, was observed dancing from her chair with a glass of sparkling wine. She remarked, “The people here in Borough Green are so good to me. I’m the Queen of Borough Green, you know, so I practise my wave!” The local community has organized a celebration for her annually since her centenary. Great-grandmother Gladys, who was born in 1916 during World War One, stated, “I know there’s lots of old ladies that probably don’t see anybody from one week to another.” She added, “I’m very lucky here.” Becky Holdstock, the organizer of Gladys’s parties, commented, “I just adore her. You can still talk to her like a friend, she’s got everything that you’d possibly ever want at 108. “She’s the most loveliest lady I’ve ever met in my life. She still goes out – she does more than me.””