BIOGRAPHY

Vi Malin was born in Ipswich, Suffolk, England, on 23 March 1906, to parents George and Hannah Lloyd. When she was six years old, the family moved to March, but soon relocated to Sheffield, where her father worked as a pub landlord. She had faint memories of the First World War. She recalled being in the backyard when German Zeppelins flew overhead during bombing raids on Sheffield.

At the age of 14, she left school and began working at the Sheffield Steelworks. She met her future husband, John—known as Jack—when she was 18 and he was 19. After seven years together, they married on 26 September 1931, when she was 25.

When the Second World War broke out, the couple were separated for four years. During that time, she worked in a shoe shop and also took on a job as a debt collector. When her husband returned and secured a job with the tram service, she gave up work in 1946. Tragedy struck in 1953 when her parents, George and Hannah, lost their lives in the devastating floods of 31 January, which hit their home on Winfarthing Avenue in South Lynn. She was widowed in 1993.

In her free time, she enjoyed crocheting and was an active member of an operatic society. She and her husband enjoyed many holidays together, visiting every one of the British Isles. At the age of 87, she flew on an airplane for the first time, embarking on a 13-hour journey to Vancouver to visit family in Canada. In 2003, at the age of 97, she moved to Surrey to be nearer family.

Vi Malin passed away in King’s Lynn, Norfolk, England, on 18 September 2017, at the age of 111 years, 179 days.

RECOGNITION

Following the passing of 110-year-old Mary Snelling, she became the oldest living person in Norfolk. Upon her own passing, she was succeeded by Edith Emily Wilkinson (13 April 1908 – 12 February 2018) of Hethersett.

Malin’s age was verified by Dr. Andrew Holmes and validated by the European Supercentenarian Organisation (ESO) on 18 January 2020.

ATTRIBUTION

* “Happy 109th Birthday, Vi!” – Crown Simmons, 23 March 2015

* “Happy 110th birthday to Lynn woman Vi” – Lynn News, 24 March 2016

* “King’s Lynn woman celebrates 110th birthday” – Eastern Daily Press, 24 March 2016

* “Norfolk woman Vi Malin has lived through two world wars, 25 Prime Ministers, five monarchs and just one World Cup victory” – Eastern Daily Press, 23 March 2017

GALLERY