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An Abertridwr couple have celebrated their platinum anniversary.
Bill and Barbara Tudor, both 94, got married on September 6, 1952 – the same year Queen Elizabeth II acceded to the throne.
They marked the occasion with an “open door day” – receiving visits from family, friends and even the Mayor of Caerphilly County Borough, Cllr Liz Aldworth.
The couple also received a postcard from Queen Elizabeth II – with their special day falling just two days before the monarch’s death.
Bill, originally from Senghenydd, and Barbara, who has lived in Abertridwr her whole life, knew each other from the age of 16, having both been regular attendees of Ebeneezer Chapel.
Bill joined the RAF aged 17 and spent three years away in the Middle East, serving in places like Egypt, Palestine and Baghdad.
While he was away, Bill and Barbara wrote letters to each other nearly every day. Upon his return to the Aber Valley, he surprised an unsuspecting Barbara by waiting outside the chapel for her – and the couple have been together ever since.
They got engaged at 22 and were married aged 24, tying the knot at the former Welsh Congregational Chapel in Abertridwr, which has since been knocked down.
They went on to have two children – Gareth, 58, and Rhiannon, 55, and have six grandchildren together.
Before joining the RAF in 1945, Bill started working at the offices at Windsor Colliery, aged just 14.
Upon returning from the RAF, he started working in Llanbradach, but returned to Windsor Colliery as a cost accountant. He later went on to work as an accountant for 25 years at Machen-based Coach Brothers, before it was bought out by a French firm. He retired at 63 after nearly 50 years of work.
Barbara worked at the David Morgan department store in Cardiff, where she worked on the comptometer – which was an early type of calculator. However, she retired aged 30 so she could look after her grandparents and later her children – but kept in touch with her colleagues, who became life-long friends.
“There’s five of us who still keep in touch. Until recently, we’d meet once a month in Cardiff,” said Barbara.
In married life, Bill and Barbara have enjoyed regular holidays abroad, including to Egpyt, where Bill spent time during his RAF years, as well as places like China, Thailand, Morocco and across Europe. Their favourite holidays were to Germany and Austria, as well as the Greek island of Aegina.
The couple also enjoyed time sequence dancing, something they were introduced to by a friend shortly after they got married. However, it’s not something they do anymore, with Barbara joking: “At 94, we’ve slowed down a bit.”
In retirement, the couple have played an active role in the running of Nazareth Community Centre in Abertridwr and are on its committee. An anniversary party was held for the couple at the centre.
Bill said: “We’ve been very fortunate to have the life we have had.”
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