Great grandparents in Maidstone are celebrating 70 years of wedded bliss today.

Things didn't start out bright for Ian and Jean Henderson. Jean threw a pair of football bots at Ian when they were at school in their teens.

But over the years their romance blossomed and they married in 1949 at the age of 24.

Today the Bearsted couple is having a surprise platinum wedding anniversary dinner with their two daughters, four grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.

Eldest daughter Sheila Carley, 68, said: "They're still very close, mum and dad can't do without each other.

"Growing up mum used to be a cub pack leader, me and my sister remember going to meetings with her.

"Dad is really into his cricket, we both remember summer days on the green with a picnic."

Ian, a retired heating and ventilation engineer and Jean, who helped give aid to Ugandan refugees arriving in the 1970s, were married on June 16 1949.

Fortunately Mr Henderson, 94, worked for Great Western Railway and had free travel, so the newly-weds hopped aboard a train to Dartmouth for their honeymoon.

Mrs Carley, from Loose, said the free travel came in handy when the family wasn't away camping or holidaying in their caravan.

She said: "Mum and dad have always been very busy and involved with the community, they've always looked after people around them and put others first.

"They had wonderful holidays in their caravan on rallies and abroad with friends. Badminton, lawn bowls and cricket were some of their passions and when dad was unable to play cricket any more, he trained at the Oval to become an Umpire at the Teston Cricket Club. He has been a member of Probus for many years."

In 1986 Ian retired from his position of chief engineer in the Architects Department of the Kent County Council in 1986.

Mrs Henderson, also 94, spent time volunteering helping the homeless with the Women's Royal Voluntary Service.

She also helped organise meals on wheels and has been an active member of the Roseacre Women's Institute for many years.

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