Happy diamond couple met at town hall dance

Ken and Marjorie Blacker will celebrate their diamond wedding anniversary with the family who mean so much to them.

The couple met at a dance at Dewsbury Town Hall in 1951 while in their teens. Mr Blacker, 80, did his national service in the RAF from 1952-1954, during which time he married his wife, on December 19 at St Peter’s in Earlsheaton. The newlyweds enjoyed a honeymoon in Blackpool, where they indulged their love of dancing at the tower ballroom.

They bought their first house in Thornhill Lees and Mr Blacker took a job as a company merchandise controller. Mrs Blacker, 81, stayed at home to look after their two children – Andrew and Elizabeth, born in 1957 and 1960.

Mr Blacker went to work for a supermarket group in Leeds before the couple opened a newsagent and a shop in Thornhill, which they left in 1993.

Mrs Blacker described the man who caught her eye as “tall, dark and handsome”, while Mr Blacker said: “I always liked a beautiful girl – it was love at first sight.”

The couple, who live in Thornhill, have enjoyed a long and happy retirement, spending time with their five grandchildren and three great grandchildren, and have recently enjoyed holidays with their son at his home in Spain.