Romford’s Hilary celebrates her 90th birthday by jumping out of a plane at 12,000 feet

A fearless grandma celebrated her 90th birthday by jumping out of an aeroplane at 12,000 feet.

Hilary Oxley was bought the skydive as a surprise birthday present by her family just weeks earlier - and was joined on the skydive by two of her granddaughters.

But the nonagenarian was completely unfazed by the terrifying feat, insisting doing her weekly shopping was “more of an ordeal”.

Hilary, of Romford , east London, was the first to jump from the plane - and said she had more trouble boarding the plane than jumping out.

It was the second time the 90-year-old had completed a skydive - the first having come a decade earlier to mark her 80th birthday.

Granddaughters Stephanie Russell, 41, and Daisy Higgs, 29, admitted being terrified before jumping.

But staff at Skydive Headcorn in Ashford, Kent, couldn’t believe how chilled out she was about the situation.

“You only live once,” she said after the skydive.

“The experience is lovely - sometimes when I go shopping I’m more nervous doing that.”

The lucky grandmother was gifted the surprise experience by her family on her birthday last month - a day she also won a holiday to Marbella from a scratchcard.

“I was so emotional with it all and, of course, I had my skydive,” Ms Oxley said of her birthday on July 22.

“It was absolutely brilliant - I’m so thrilled.

“Never in a million years when I did it when I was 80 did I think I would be here 10 years later.”

The group arrived in Ashford at 8.15am on Sunday (August 6), but strong winds delayed their ascent by eight hours.

It was around 4.15pm that afternoon when Hilary finally made the jump, having initially experienced problems boarding the small plane due to bleeding from her legs.

But when it came to exiting the plane from a dizzying height of 2.3 miles, Hilary was the first to jump.

“It was easier me coming out of a plane than it was getting on,” the pensioner said.

“I still go shopping and I think: ‘What do I want?’ That’s more of an ordeal for me than what I’ve done here.”

Despite her steely nerves, her grandaughters admitted they were more than a little scared.

Stephanie Russell admitted it was a prized family moment that would live long in their collective memory.

She said: “It’s amazing for me and my sister... to share that memory with my nan is incredible.”

Though Hilary admitted that two skydives were more than enough for now, she refused to rule out another when she turns 95.

Jane Buckle, managing director at Skydive Headcorn, hailed her “great achievement” - but revealed that she isn’t the oldest skydiver they’ve had.

“It’s a great achievement for a 90-year-old but not the oldest we’ve ever had,” the 65-year-old said.

“We had a 95-year-old lady jump earlier this year. Hilary was great fun and very relaxed and thoroughly enjoyed herself.”