A COUPLE who met at a dance in the 1950s celebrated half a century of marriage yesterday.

The rain poured on Cliff and Shirley Holliday’s wedding day at St Aidan’s Church in Chilton on July 11, 1959, and continued throughout their week-long honeymoon in Blackpool, where the newlyweds only had one day of sunshine.

The couple met in their early 20s at the rink in Spennymoor in 1958, and got engaged a short time later whilst on a day trip to York.

They started married life in a house worth £150 in Metal Bridge, before moving to Ferryhill in the mid 1960s, where they have lived ever since.

Mrs Holliday, 73, said the highlights of their marriage were the birth of their son, Kevin, now 45, and their four grandchildren.

Former factory worker Mr Holliday, 74, said the secret to their long marriage was good communication, and added: "We have never had any secrets, and we have always been good friends."