TRIBUTES have been paid to a fun-loving Southend 103-year-old who would “light up the room with her personality”.

Daisy Smith, known to her family and friends as “the original Essex girl” passed away peacefully on Sunday.

Despite her age, Daisy was fun-loving until the very end and even tried pink gin for the first time at 102 years old.

Great-granddaughter, Sophie Darby, 25, has lead the tributes to the “original Essex girl” and said that she “will be sorely missed.”

She said: “She was full of energy and the best advice she ever gave me was to take your time and live your life.

“She always loved seeing photos of the past, even at 103 and she had her marbles all the way to end, she was all there and would light up the room, she had a real personality.

“It was like she wasn’t 103, I often asked her ‘how old do you feel’ and she would say ‘when I am with you, I feel 16’.”

Daisy was originally based in Dagenham before moving to south Essex, becoming well known to Sophie’s friends and the wider community of Eastwood.

“I uploaded a tribute to her when she passed on Friday and people were saying they remembered her and they knew her and said it was so upsetting,” Sophie added.

“She was well known to the community, really just from me sharing her on social media.

“I uploaded a video where I took her to the Bell House in Leigh and she tried pink gin for the first time at 102. She said it was lovely and then I wheeled her right back to the home.

“Before she left, I asked if she had any life advice and she said I should just take my time.”

Daisy had two children, four grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren, and five great-great-grandchildren.

Prior to her death, Daisy was a resident in Eastwood’s Brookland Care Home.

Son, Edward Smith, 79 said: “She had a long life and Brookland Care Home and all the staff were outstanding and treated her with dignity and respect.

“They didn’t just treat her like a patient, they treated her like a family member, they went above and beyond.”