A WILTSHIRE couple, Michael and Marjorie Bell, celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary on Tuesday.

The pair met at a dance at the Bathampton Mill in Bath in April 1959 – on that evening Michael was known to have said: “I am going to marry that girl!”

They were married a year later on the Queen’s Birthday on April 21 1960 in Wellow, Somerset. The bridesmaids were Nancy Haines, Maureen Hughes, Susan Barnes and Linda Saywell, and the best man was John Cook.

Marjorie was a farmer’s daughter from Seagry near Chippenham and Michael an agricultural contractor from Cherhill near Calne.

They lived in Cherhill and began married life alongside the contracting business.

Over the years they had four children, Stewart, Robert and Colin and Patsy-Anne, and at the company’s peak during the summers they employed 35 staff.

Michael would oversee the operation of their 20 tractors and 13 combine harvesters while Marjorie would handle the endless phone calls and bookings from farmers ready for harvesting.

They moved to Pennhill Farm near Calne in 1976 and branched out into rearing cattle and share farming. Outside of family and work, Marjorie was leader of Calne Young Farmers for 18 years and, against all the odds, managed to win the county shield twice.

Michael had a passion for steam engines which soaked up most of the few days off he took.

The family's contracting company hit hard times in the early 1980s and the family carried on trading at a reduced size until the early 1990s when they retired.

In their retirement, they have enjoyed cruising and spending time with their 11 grand and three great-grandchildren, including one in Switzerland they have not yet met.