Platinum Raunds pair Doreen and Brian celebrate 70th wedding anniversary with family

A Raunds couple have marked their upcoming platinum wedding anniversary with their family by reminiscing about the time they have spent together.

Brian (92) and Doreen (90) Richardson married on March 20, 1954, and over the last 70 years have shared happy memories with their three children and four grandchildren.

Tom Turner, their eldest grandson, expressed his pride at the ‘landmark’ anniversary and what the achievement means to the family.

He said: "70 years of marriage is a rare landmark for a rare couple.

"Throughout the 70 years grandma and grandad have set an example of what it means to show unconditional love, through a range of both joyous occasions and serious challenges.

"Their dedication to each other is something to be marvelled and celebrated, and I know this devotion to each other and their wider family will continue to inspire us all for years to come."

Doreen grew up in Clapham near Bedford, and was the eldest of six children. She worked in a series of hospitals as a nurse after leaving school, and met Brian who worked as a chef at North Wing Hospital in Bedford. He was the eldest of four children, and initially lived in Sussex before moving to Bedford with his family.

They became fully acquainted at the north wing dance, and at the end of the evening Doreen gave Brian a spontaneous kiss so he called on her the next day. It was ‘love at first sight’ for the couple, and from there they took dance lessons together in Brickhill before deciding to tie the knot in 1954.

After marrying they moved to Bromham, where they would eventually raise three children of their own. Once all of their children left home they moved to Northamptonshire, and have remained in Raunds ever since.

Doreen and Brian celebrated the occasion with dinner cooked by their family and a cake, shared with their middle child Sandy, their youngest child Pete, their families and their grandchildren at Pete's house in Suffolk.

And the secret to such a long marriage? ‘Give and take’.