Daventry matching pair mark 50 years of marriage

Bill and Carol Allibone, of Willoughby Close, met in the Kings Head pub in Napton-on-the-Hill, Warwickshire.

Carol, now 70, was playing dominoes with her friends when Bill, who used to visit the pub occasionally, decided to approach his future wife mid-game.

“I used to pop my nose in and tell her what she was doing wrong,” said Bill, now 72.

The pair went on their first date in May 1965. “It was Cup Final day,” recalls Bill. “It was the first time we’d arranged to meet each other. We went to the other pub in Napton and took a walk around the village.”

Bill and Carol would marry two years later on April 1, 1967, in Napton Church with about 40 guests in attendance.

“It went well. It was a lovely, sunny day,” said Carol. “There was a bit of frost in the morning so everything was white. We got married at noon and by then the sun had come out and it was lovely,” said Bill.

After tying the knot they moved to Daventry, Bill’s home town, to settle and start a family.

Bill continued working as a bricklayer while Carol raised their son and daughter.

Carol then got a job in the Maclaren pushchair factory where she would go on to work for 28 years.

The Allibones celebrated their milestone by paying their daughter a weekend visit in Chester.