A COUPLE whose eyes met across a crowded Leigh dance floor have celebrated 50 years of wedded bliss.

John and Marjorie Alderman, who were both brought up in Pennington, met in 1949 at the Parish Institute's Saturday evening dance in Union Street, Leigh.

Their romance blossomed after sharing a few dances and they courted for two years before marrying at Bedford Parish Church, in Leigh, in 1951.

Marjorie, now 74, worked at British Insulated Calendar Cables and became a well-known face in the area after opening a chain of wool shops in Atherton, Leigh and Bolton in the 1970s.

John, 75, lectured in Civil Engineering at Manchester University for 12 years before setting up his own business in Astley, Sub-soil Surveys, which is still thriving today.

The couple, who have lived in Wellington Road, Atherton, for the past 32 years, have two daughters, Julie and Wendy, and are the proud grandparents of two grandsons.

John is a well-respected figure in the Scouts movement, having run the Bedford Church group for many years, before holding the post of district commissioner in Leigh for 20 years, and is now president of Leigh Scouts.

Marjorie has proved to be just as keen as helping with the Scouts, and the couple spent many years taking away groups of youngsters on the annual camp and trek.

Many people have also benefited from John's 40 years of fund-raising efforts with Tyldesley Rotary Club.

He is a former president and currently helps out as chairman of the vocational service, which involves him chatting to school pupils about his own career and their job hopes.

The couple, who held a party at home to celebrate their golden wedding anniversary last week, claim they are happiest gardening and spending time with their family.

Marjorie said: "I think we've always had shared interests and we're both homelovers.

"When we got married we had no money and never thought about what life would be like 50 years down the line.

"We've always taken each day as it comes and worked hard." THE HAPPY COUPLE: John and Marjorie Alderman as they are today and, inset, on their wedding day, 50 years ago