Couple from Peterborough who enjoyed decades of laughing and dancing together celebrate 70 years of marriage

Malcolm and Barbara Watson recently celebrated their Platinum wedding anniversary with a meal out in Alwalton with family.

The pair met through mutual friends in May 1953 - on a night out in the Ostrich pub in North Street, Peterborough.

“My first impression of Malcolm was that he was a lovely blue-eyed blonde,” said Barbara, 91.

"She wasn’t the best looking in the room, but I thought she was very nice,” joked Malcolm, 89, with the pair both laughing at the comment.

Indeed, humour is a big part of their marriage success, with the couple not taking the little things in life too seriously.

"We laugh a lot, I think that’s important,” said Barbara. “You can’t be miserable all the time, no-one wants to be around people like that. It’s important to laugh and be happy.”

Almost five decades of dancing together has also kept the spark alive. "We got into ballroom dancing in our early 40s, but quickly moved onto modern sequence dancing which we preferred,” explains Barbara. “We have travelled all over the Peterborough and Lincolnshire area taking part in dances and met some wonderful people. We absolutely loved it.”

The Watsons carried on dancing well into their 80s, but say they still listen to the music which helps to “bring back happy memories.”

After being introduced by friends in 1953, Malcolm and Barbara enjoyed several double dates, where their relationship blossomed. They tied the knot in St Andrew’s Church in Alwalton on March 31, 1956.

Their 70th anniversary celebrations were held at The Cuckoo pub in the village on April 4. To mark the occasion, Barbara made a cake using the same mini vase that adorned their wedding cake 70 years earlier.

"The vase was used on three-tier cakes I made for our golden and diamond wedding anniversaries too – so it’s looking a little bit sad now,” she added. "We had big parties and dances for those occasions, but we’re too old to dance now, so just wanted a quieter celebration for our 70th.”

Barbara grew up in Alwalton, where the couple have lived together since marrying. Barbara’s father, Leslie Adams, was the village blacksmith.

Malcolm was originally from Lincolnshire, but worked on the railway in Peterborough. He completed national service for the Army, and was posted out to Germany for six months just a few weeks after their wedding.

In his younger years, Malcolm worked at Newells engineering and Baker Perkins, while helping his father-in-law with blacksmithing on weekends. He was also chairman of the parish council for more than 20 years and volunteered as a starting marshall at Peterborough Speedway in the 1970s.

Barbara had office jobs before becoming a mum, and later went to work in the office at Peterborough Showground for eight years before retirement. She was also president of Alwalton WI.

The couple have a son and daughter, three grandsons and eight great-grandchildren.