Festivities began with a socially distanced visit from Mary’s daughter, which Mary thoroughly enjoyed, followed by a lunch of Mary’s favourite food: lasagne.

As a surprise for Mary, the team at Chilterns Court decorated the home with banners and balloons and Mary and her fellow residents enjoyed fruity fizz with birthday cake. 

But the biggest surprise was still yet to come. 

Mary said: “The most wonderful part of the day was receiving a This is Your Life book that the home had created for me. 

“Looking through all the photos and reading a few things about me brought back so many happy memories that I had forgotten. It made my day.”

Mary continued: “So much effort had been put into it. From all the things written to the photos of me and my family throughout my life – it was all amazing, even down to the big red book itself.”

And Mary’s favourite gift? “I received lots of flowers, chocolates, and fruit cake which were lovely, but my best gift was a new phone.”

She added: “Thank you to everyone at Chilterns Court who did all this for me. It made me feel so special.”