A CHANCE meeting at a dance hall led to long-lasting wedded bliss for one happy couple who celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary next week.

Stratton couple Brian and Jean Jones, aged 82 and 79, will ring in their diamond wedding anniversary on June 5 after first meeting in 1955.

Cupid’s arrow struck for the couple at the Majestic Ballroom in Milton Road when Jean approached Brian in a case of mistaken identity.

Brian said: “Jean asked me, are you so and so, and I said, of course not but I thought, she seems okay and I liked her straightaway. I hoped I would see her again.”

Jean said: “I thought he looked nice and I loved his hair, He was a teddy boy back then.”

Their love soon blossomed over regular dates at the coffee shop with smitten Brian cementing their love when he popped the question less than a year later.

The pair tied the knot at St Barnabus Church, Gorse Hill on June 5 1957 before honeymooning in sunny Margate.

They soon welcomed their daughter Deborah and now have two grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

The couple built a life together in Gorse Hill and later Stratton with Jean employed in customer service at Marks and Spencer and Brian working in the railways before stints at the Pressed Steel Company plant and Deloro Stellite in Cheney Manor..

The couple credit their enduring love-story with similar interests and an ability to compromise.

Jean said: “There has to be give and take on both sides. You have to compromise sometimes and that’s what I would tell other couples.

“He’s always been very easy-going and I always liked his hair. He is very caring and we just get on and always have done.”

Brian said: “No marriage is perfect, but no problem is so big that you can’t get over it. You have the occasional argument but you sit down and talk about it and that’s what we have always done. “

Jean and Brian remain young at heart and enjoy a weekly night out at the New Century Club where they relive the early days of their romance through dance.

The jet-setting pair have also travelled the world together, visiting Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Mexico, Spain and Egypt.

They credit a holiday to Mauritius as one of their favourite memories

Brian said: “We made friends with a man who worked in our hotel. He then invited us to his family member’s wedding and we had a fantastic day. It was an experience in itself.”

They will celebrate their milestone anniversary with a family party at the Grange Leisure Centre.

The event will be a double celebration as Deborah and her husband Hugh are celebrating 35 years of matrimonial bliss

Brian and Jean will forgo gifts in favour of donations to the Brighter Futures radiotherapy appeal.