A CHANCE meeting at a youth dance resulted in a whirlwind romance for Melksham couple Brian and Beryl Warwick, who have just celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary.

The pair, who live in Orchard Gardens, tied the knot on March 31, 1956 and met at an 18+ youth dance in the late 1940s when they were living in Gatley, South Manchester.

Mr Warwick, 84, said: “As you can imagine 60 years is a very long time and it is quite incredible when I look back to my younger days and what has taken place since.

“It has been incredible. We were both brought up during World War Two and having to live through the Blitz.

“The first date we had was playing tennis as we were both very athletic in those days. We tied the knot on Easter Saturday.”

Mrs Warwick, 83, was only 17 at the time and not eligible to attend the dance but that did not stop their romance from blossoming.

The couple moved to Melksham over 30 years ago but have extensive family living in Cheshire with two children, six grandchildren, two great-grandchildren and another on the way.

Mrs Warwick said: “It has been up and down like most married couples. You need to share things with each other. It has all gone reasonably smoothly so far.

“It has been a very happy 60 years and we have some great children and grandchildren. We are a very close knit family and we see each other as often as we can.

“Sadly, we do not see as much of each other anymore as they live up north but we get together when we can.

“We have done a lot of travelling as I use to work in a travel agents so we use to get away quite often.”

Mr Warwick added: “I have been involved in the community here in Melksham for some years now.

“It is important to me. It is about improving the quality of life for the most vulnerable.”