Triple celebrationfor diamond pair

JUNE and Walter Walsh

CHILDHOOD sweethearts Walter and June Walsh celebrate 60 years of marriage today ­- but that's not the only cause for celebration for the couple.

As well as raising a glass to mark their diamond wedding anniversary, the happy couple will also celebrate June's 80th birthday today.

If today wasn't already special enough, their daughter Colette - the youngest of six children - is also getting married.

Walter (82) said: "I really like that Colette has chosen that day. It means that even when we are gone it will still be a special day for the family and we will be in their minds."

Originally from Ireland, they met when Colette was 12 and Walter was 14 while playing in a field with friends near their homes in Dublin.

They have been together ever since and regularly went to dance halls together as youngsters.

"If my dad had known, he would have killed us," June joked.

They married in 1956 and the following year Walter moved to Oldham and June followed soon after.

Walter, who worked as a welder, said: "It was a new start in life. This is where the jobs were.

"You could leave a job at lunch and have a new one by teatime."

The childhood sweethearts moved to St Mary's initially before moving to Fitton Hill where they still live today.

Together, they have six children: Walter, Vivien, Jacqueline, Trevor, June and Colette.

It is clear that the couple's great sense of humour is one of the main ingredients making up the recipe of their successful marriage and both agree that compromise has also played a big part.

Walter said: "It's about give and take. You learn that you can't have it you own way all the time but I still feel the same way I did when we first met."

June added: "Family is very important to us. We're very lucky to have such a big family."