The Oldest People in the World (2007)

As life expectancy continues to soar, more and more of us are living well over the age of 100.

Award-winning filmmaker Daisy Asquith asks some of the oldest people in the world the question everyone wants answered - what is the secret to long life? And would they recommend living to such a remarkable age?

Emma Tillman is 114 and the oldest person in the world. Her enormous family is coming to Connecticut for a party - at the last count there were 39 great-grandchildren, 17 great great-grandchildren, 10 great great great-grandchildren and 2 great great great great-grandchildren. In contrast, 112-year-old Gertrude Baines in downtown LA is the last surviving member of her family.

In Japan, we meet Tsuru, an active 100-year-old who runs a small shop and tends her garden in Okinawa, while over in Portugal, 113-year-old Maria de Jesus has to be wheeled out in a chair to take the sun in the afternoon. Back in England, we discuss life at 111 with Henry, who is the oldest man in England - he stresses the importance of having a good sense of humour.

This revealing film journeys across three continents to give an extraordinary insight into what it's like to have lived over three centuries.