Ref. 28422-1IT may not have been snowing but it was certainly a white Christmas for one Swindon couple who tied the knot 60 years ago.

Ted and Betty Brewer celebrate their diamond wedding anniversary tomorrow.

And Ted, of Kingsdown Road, still remembers the Christmas Day when his sweetheart walked down the aisle in a white silk and lace gown she had made herself.

Ted, 80, said: "She was just very pretty and I really loved her, I still do now.

"Ever since then we have never been separated, we have always been together."

The couple met in London when they were both working in a factory that made Army uniforms.

Ted, who is one of 14 children, says they were only given permission to marry on Christmas day because it was wartime and the usual rules had been relaxed.

He and Betty were married in All Saints Church, Kings Cross, London.

"It just seemed like the natural thing to do," he said. "My brothers were home from the Army and the Navy and it was a rare time when we were altogether.

"We went home and had a party for three days."

The couple moved to Swindon in 1973 when Ted got a job as a storekeeper for the Post Office at the Dorcan Depot.

A couple of years later they bought a grocery shop in Moredon, which Betty ran with their daughter Lyn until 12 years ago.

Sadly, the couple do not live together anymore as Betty, 79, needs specialist care.

She stays at Badbury Court, in Chiseldon, and Ted visits her twice a day.

He said: "We have had a really happy life, we never had any arguments. We were just compatible.

"Our love got stronger as we got older. We rely on each other, there is a strong bond between us."

Betty is now looking forward to returning home for a turkey dinner exactly the same meal the couple enjoyed for their wedding feast.

Ted is well known in the town for his work in the community.

He was awarded the British Empire Medal in 1988 in recognition for his dedication.

"I was gobsmacked when I got the award," he said. "Betty was so pleased as well."

He was the secretary of his works' charity appeal, which organised special parties for disabled children and pensioners.

The events were funded through donations and proceeds from ballroom dances, which were sometimes attended by up to 400 people.

"It all started with people giving money out of their wages," he said.

"We used to have parties for around 200 children. One year the lads built a cowboy saloon and dressed up for the children."

The parties stopped in the late 1980s, after Ted retired, but he continued his fundraising activities until 1999 when the Dorcan and Queens Drive Charity Committee decided to call it a day because of lack of funds.

He was also involved with Hospital Radio Swindon for 20 years.

During that time he visited patients twice a week to cheer them up.

And he was a volunteer for the St John Ambulance for more than 50 years, first as an instructor and then as a mock casualty.

The couple have three children, Pamela, 51, who lives in Staffordshire, Alan, 56, who lives in Woking and Lyn, 45, who lives next door to Ted.

They also have seven grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.