Wrong birthday for 99 years

When Nellie Davies blew out the candles on her 100th birthday cake yesterday, she was marking more than one special occasion - for the first time she celebrated her birthday on the correct day.

Until yesterday, she always celebrated it on May 2 and it was only when relatives took out her birth certificate to send to the Queen so she would receive a telegram that they discovered she was actually born 22 days later.

A great-grandmother, Mrs Davies, who lives near Dover, Kent, said: "I couldn't believe it. My mum and dad must have got mixed up somewhere down the line after I was born because we have always celebrated it on the 2nd."

Mrs Davies, who is originally from Wrexham, Wales, added: "What's wrong with having two birthday parties? After all, not everyone turns 100."

Guests included her three surviving children Alma, Peter, Burt, and her 13 great-grandchildren. Her fourth child, Audrey died in 1996.

Alma, 73, said: "We were gobsmacked when we found out. It's amazing really."

Ann Laight, the manager of Mrs Davies's housing complex, added: "She is a real character - it could only happen to her.

"She loved the parties because she could have a few drinks and get up for a bit of a dance around with her family."

Mrs Davies, whose husband, George, a coal miner, died in 1983, said the secret of her long life was a cup of tea with a dash of whisky when she got out of bed, and a glass of port for lunch.