CHILDHOOD sweethearts have celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary.
Gordon and Rita Holliday, 78, who live at Lowlands House, in Brandon, were joined by family members from as far as Bournemouth for a meal at a local pub.
The couple, who until recently lived at Bowburn, received a message of congratulations from the Queen.
They both hail from the Stanley area and married in their teens.
Mr Holliday was a rigger in the Fleet Air Arm and in civvy street did a wide variety of jobs, including builder's clerk and relief manager for a newsagents.
The couple, who spent a few years living in Dorset, have a son, John, and three daughters, Jean, Joan and Christine.
They also have three grand-children with a fourth on the way.
They lived in Bowburn until about three months ago when poor health forced them to move to the home.
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