A 102-year-old man from Southampton has set the record as the oldest English Emigrant after setting to sail for New Zealand on Saturday.

Eric King-Turner, a retired dentist, embarked on a six-week voyage from Southampton with Kiwi wife Doris, 87.

Eric, who will turn 103 upon his arrival, said he merely wants to start a new life 12,000 miles away.

"Being in the Guinness Book of Records is not important," said Eric. "What's important is that when I'm 105 I don't want to be thinking, 'I wish I'd moved to the other side of the world when I was 102'."

The couple, both of them widowed, tied the knots 13 years ago after their initial meeting in the 1970s.

While the decided to settle in Titchfield, Hants, Doris, a mother of five by her previous marriage, maintained a home in Nelson on the South Island.

"It's not so crowded and the weather's better. It's a wonderful adventure," Eric said in describing his future neighborhood in New Zealand.