KATE and 'Pop' Gay from Okehampton may not have had the big white wedding they planned but their marriage has been going strong for 60 years.
The couple were due to get married at Northlew Church but when Garfield Gay, who is known as 'Pop', was called up for war just before the wedding, all their hopes were dashed.
Mr Garfield was confined to barracks at Launceston but acquired a special licence to marry in the local church a day before he was due to go to Dunkirk.
Mrs Garfield explained: 'He phone me and asked me to be there at 12 noon the next day — there were six of us and after we had a cup of tea and a stale bun in the cafe.
'There were no flowers and no wedding dress and the next day my husband, who was in the Bren Gun Carriers, had to move on — I never saw him again for several months.'
The wedding dress was returned and an eiderdown and bedspread were sent back in its place.
Seeing the confetti in an anniversary card from an old friend this week was a poignant moment for Mrs Garfield.
'This is the first lot of confetti I've had,' she said. 'Our wedding may not have been what we planned but it has lasted 60 years so we are lucky,' she said.
When the war ended Mr Garfield went 'on the buses' and eventually started up his own coach company — Carmel Coaches of Northlew which is still going strong under another ownership.
The couple, who are both from Northlew, moved to Okehampton on retirement and have a son and daughter, five grandsons and one great grand-daughter.
Mr Garfield is president of the Northlew British Legion and was instrumental in getting a new memorial, to those who died in war, installed opposite the church two years ago.
The couple's diamond wedding anniversary is today (Thursday) but they will be celebrating with family and friends on Sunday at Okehampton Rugby Club.