9:31am Friday 10th February 2006
CHAMPAGNE corks will be popping for most of next week for an extra special platinum wedding anniversary for a Whitton couple.
Val and George Plumley will celebrate their 70th wedding anniversary on February 15, just one day short of the most amorous day of the year Valentine's Day.
The couple, both 91 years old, will celebrate with family and friends for the week, including their son, who lives in Los Angeles, four grandchildren and six great grandchildren.
Val said: "When we chose the date neither one of us knew anything about Valentine's Day. People have often asked me if we'd planned it that way but in those days we didn't celebrate anything like that in this country. I must admit it is a nice touch."
Val, a former belly dancer and musical comedy actress, met her husband in 1935 when a mutual friend set them up at a party in Earls Court.
She says: "George was in the merchant navy and happened to be in the area that day so he came to the party. When I met him he just grabbed me and I ended up sitting on his knee for most of the evening. Then he went back to his boat and told all his friends that he'd just met the girl he was going to marry."
True to his word, George married Val within a year at Ealing Register Office in 1936 and the couple have been living in relative wedded bliss ever since, moving to Isleworth during the Battle of Britain and to their Warren Road home 38 years ago.
Val said: "We've been through a lot in our time and I think a big aspect of our marital success has been tolerance. Marriage is a lot to do with having confidence and carrying on the best way you can as partners."
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