Betty Richardson had the honour in 1948, the same year she had married her husband Bill at Warwick register office.

They met in 1946 after Mr Richardson had finished serving in the Second World War, and he had began working at Lockheed in Leamington while lodging at Mrs Richardson's mother's house.

Mrs Richardson, 77, said: "I think it was love at first sight! I thought he was very handsome and intelligent.

"I had just left Kings High School and I was working at the Cherry Orchard Brickworks as a secretary at the time. We went out for a year and a couple of months before we were married."

They have lived at their Oaks Road house since 1954 and Mrs Richardson has been a Kenilworth resident her whole life.

She said: "It was so long ago since we moved in but it doesn't seem it."

Mr Richardson, 88, was in the Royal Core of Signals during the war. He joined up at the age of 21 and served as a wireless operator in various European countries including Iceland, France and Germany. While he was in Holland, he was stationed near to the Nimagen Bridge, made famous by the film A Bridge Too Far. He was also part of the Allied forces in the Normandy D-Day landings in June 1944.

The couple have a daughter, Carol, born in June 1953 and a grandson, William, now 17. They will celebrate their anniversary at a party with family and friends.

Mrs Richardson said: "The whole marriage has been magic - we have had our little tiffs like everyone but nothing major. Being patient with each other is important, as is being in love and staying in love."