A LOVING family and a lot of shared laughter have kept the magic alive in a marriage that has lasted 65 years.

Bob and Agnes Ankers kept open house for their anniversary yesterday, welcoming friends and their large extended family to their home in Ravensworth Road, Ferryhill.

The couple are close to their daughter Pearl Grieves and sons Bob and Alan, their five grandchildren and five great grandchildren who pay them regular visits.

They met at a dance in the old Masonic Hall and married in style at St Lukes Church, with Agnes' mother boiling joints of ham and tongue for the reception. Agnes wore an elaborate dress bought from Doggarts, in Bishop Auckland, and the six bridesmaids all wore different coloured dresses.

She said: It wasn't easy getting everything together because of the war but it was a lovely day."

Agnes worked in the Royal Ordnance Factory at Spennymoor during the war and Bob, a miner at Mainsforth Colliery, joined the Home Guard.

After the children grew, she worked at Smart and Brown. At 84, she is active in the Ferryhill community as a member of Ferryhill Women's Institute and the Labour Party. She attends Friday coffee mornings at the church.

She said: "We have been very happy and still are. We are a very close family and we have a lot of laughs together. My parents celebrated their 70th anniversary when it was our 50th so it must run in the family."