Jack and May Goodings celebrated their wedding anniversary on November 20th, the same day as the Queen and Prince Philip celebrated their Diamond anniversary. However, Jack and May got there first - they were celebrating their 72nd anniversary! They now live in Gorsley, in a flat attached to the home of one of their two son's Peter and his wife Christine. They are both well and enjoyed celebrating their anniversary. Jack is 92 and May is 93 - she can still be seen walking around the lanes in Gorsley, not even using a walking stick, Their marriage took place when they were 21 years of age in St James Church, Handsworth, Birmingham in 1935. Times were hard in the 1930s and May being a very practical thrifty lady was married in a grey suit, white blouse and a grey hat. On setting up home, Jack and May would never buy furniture unless they could pay in cash. Jack's father was a prison officer in Dartmoor whose wife died giving birth to another child when Jack was only l year 8 months old. Jack spent the first ten years of his life in the Dartmoor area, attending school in Princetown, and he knew the moors like the back of his hand. Jack's father was transferred later to Winston Green Prison in Birmingham. Following school Jack worked at the New Hudson Bicycle Company constructing tandems. He then went on to train as a nurse at the infirmary. May left school at 14 and started work in a factory covering jewel boxes. One day she saw a job with better pay advertised on the door of a laundry. She immediately applied, accepted and was told to start that very afternoon, and she became a skilled at ironing, she then worked long hours at the local Co-op store, often until 9pm in the evening. May joined evening art classes when Jack was attending night school at the nearby Tech College. They met at the college dances and became a first class dancing couple. During the war May worked in a factory building landing lights. Jack was a passionate footballer and Aston Villa took him on to their books. Jack was enjoying his nursing career on the wards interacting happily with patients, but, with rumours of an approaching war, he volunteered as a Supplementary Reservist. He still remembers his number - 7350338! When war broke out Jack was immediately called up and gathered with over a 1,000 men at New Street Station in atrocious weather. Their group was among the first of the British troops to land in Cherbourg.