A couple have set a date to tie the knot - 42 years after they got engaged.
And Daphne Thorp joked the engagement ring David Barker bought her four decades ago no longer fits.
Daphne, who will be 82 on the same day of her July wedding, and David, 71, will tie the knot at Huddersfield Town Hall after four decades together.
The Crosland Moor couple joked: “We didn’t want to rush” as they spoke about why it’s taken them so long to wed.
David said light-heartedly: “I picked her birthday as the day to get married so I won’t forget to buy her a card.
“But if truth be told, I still love her and it’s about time we did it.”
Daphne added: “We’ve nothing to lose at our age.”
The couple both laugh and joke about their long engagement since David popped the question in a Milnsbridge Indian restaurant.
The couple met on the dance floor at the former Rawlins Dance School in Northumberland Street.
Daphne explained: “I was learning to dance and we were told by Mr Rawlins, the dance teacher, to ask any man to dance with us and if they said no we were to tell him.
“Well I saw this tall, slim man doing the jive and he looked brilliant. I actually found him propping up the bar, but I asked him to dance and that’s how we met.”
The couple paired each other at competitions and eventually love blossomed.
An engagement wasn’t far off, although Daphne made him wait before saying ‘Yes’.
But neither were in a rush to wed and they’ve enjoyed a happy life together - David worked in railway maintenance and Daphne, as well as being mother to Susan and Nicholas, worked for the Post Office in Huddersfield.
Nicholas will give his mother away on her big day and Susan, owner of Penny’s Pantry in Slaithwaite, will throw a wedding reception at the cafe for invited guests.
David’s best man is long-time friend Donald Cameron, of Birchencliffe, while Daphne’s bridesmaid has been waiting a very long time, as she explained: “When we got engaged my daughter Susan’s best friend Heather Brown asked us if she could be a bridesmaid. They were only children then.
“Well we said yes but it’s gone on and on and 40 years later I thought it would be nice to ask her as we did promise... it’s the first time I’ve ever heard her swear, but she’s said yes,” Daphne laughed.
“We’re all looking forward to it, we’re quite excited now.”
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