THE secret to 70 years of happy marriage is ‘falling out every now and then’, according to one couple.

Dolores and William Frodsham celebrated their platinum wedding anniversary this month, having tied the knot in 1949.

The couple, from Chorley, met a year earlier through Dolores’s brother Dougie who was with William’s sister Claris at the time.

And Dolores said she fell in love with William the moment she set eyes on him. Dolores, 89, said, William, 92, looked like a film star when they met.

She said: “He had blond hair and did not have his shirt on.

“He was very tanned and had a great personality.”

The couple married a year later when they were aged 18 and 22 but were parted while William served in the Royal Artillery as part of his national service.

The pair have four children, 10 grandchildren, 23 great grandchildren and three great, great grandchildren.

William worked as a farmer in Kent for a period before moving back to Chorley in the 1950s to work in the Ellerbeck Colliery for the rest of his working life.

Looking back at their relationship, Dolores said: “We have some wonderful memories. Our marriage has lasted so long because we rowed and I always loved making up again. It’s good to row every now and then.

“William was always great with the children. I would bathe them and he would dry them. He used to play with them, as well as the grandchildren.”

Dolores said William used to drive the pit ponies and she was concerned about his safety every day.

She said: “He once almost died when a mine collapsed and killed several of his friends. He hadn’t entered the mine at that specific time and survived.”

To celebrate their anniversary, the couple’s family organised a celebratory party at Chapel House Christian Fellowship Church in Moor Road, Chorley.

Maria Kelly, 28, one of the couple’s granddaughters, said she was proud of her grandparents for reaching the milestone.

She said: “It was a great celebration and the whole family and friends were there. William is known for telling lots of jokes in Chorley.”

The couple were sent a congratulatory card from The Queen to mark their anniversary.

Mrs Frodsham said: “I think I love my William even more now than the day I married him.

“We’ve been happily married for so long and I have loved every minute.

“He’s a wonderful man.”