A diamond couple who met at a Saturday night dance are celebrating 60 years together this week.

Pamela, 80, and Harold Merrick, 92, married at the Christ the Saviour Church in Ealing Broadway on June 27, 1953.

The pair moved to South Harrow ten years later and have lived in the same house for nearly 50 years.

Mrs Merrick said: “I don’t think there is any special secret to 60 years of marriage. We’ve had our ups and downs like everyone. But we still feel the same about each other after all these years.

Mr Merrick said: “We’ve always tried to give each other space and understand each other. We’ve never had a fight.”

Pamela first caught the eye of Harold at a Saturday dance at the Montague Ballroom, Ealing, in 1951.

Mrs Merrick said: “Going to dances was a big part of your social life back then and I remember meeting Harry because he gave me a big bar of chocolate.

Harold, a former RAF gunner who served on a bomber during the Second World War, said: “You have to remember it was rationed back then and it was tough to get hold of.

Mrs Merrick said: “We found we had a connection early on when I found out he was from Sheffield. My father had been stationed there in the army so we were able to talk about that."

After ten years of marriage the couple moved to South Harrow in 1963 to be closer to Mr Merrick’s work at United Biscuits in Harlesden, where he worked as a salesman for 32 years.

To celebrate the milestone the couple will be enjoying a small family gathering with their sons Paul, 57, and Keith, 54, and their two grandchildren.