76172-55STICKING together through thick and thin is the secret to a long and happy marriage according to a Swindon couple.

John and Maureen Kinch, of Colebrook Road will celebrate their Golden Wedding Anniversary on February 26.

A chance meeting when Mrs Kinch, 69, was helping her friend find a room to rent, led to a blossoming romance between her and John.

She said: "I was only 17 and John was 21.

"We met in August and by December John wanted us to get married. I was too young so I put it off."

So, after an 18-month courtship they married in their hometown of Southall, Middlesex.

"It was a nice wedding for the fifties but not like weddings today."

The couple moved to the countryside and then to Swindon in 1968 looking for a faster pace of life.

Mrs Kinch said: "We had lived in the countryside for six and a half years but didn't want our children to lead a sheltered life."

The couple have two children, Sandra, 48, and Jan, 45.

Mrs Kinch said: "We are a very close family." John was a soldier in the Irish army and later became a welder.

Maureen worked as a shop assistant in British Home Stores for 13 years.

"We have never lived in each others pockets."

The couple, who are now both retired, still enjoy pursuing their own hobbies.

While John is a keen bowler at the Westlecott Bowls Club in Old Town, Maureen plays skittles in a pub league.

Mrs Kinch said: "We don't go pubbing anymore because of the smoke but we still like going out for meals."

The couple say they have had a good marriage and are now beginning to take life a bit slower.

"We've always been fortunate. We've worked hard for it but we've been lucky,'' said Mrs Kinch.

She added: "We've had our ups and downs but we've stuck together."

To celebrate, family and friends will join the couple at Blunsdon House for an anniversary lunch on Sunday.

Lyndsay Scanlan