THE moment Denzil Lloyd set eyes on young Joyce in the pretty pink dress at a Ewyas Harold Hall dance in the mid-1950s he knew she was going to be his wife.

True to his word they were married at St Peter’s Church in May 1958.

The couple, who have three children and two grandchildren, celebrated their golden wedding by taking a three week holiday to Cornwall.

On the day itself their neighbours in Dormington Drive, Hereford, decorated their car and carport with balloons “All day we had visits from family and friends and lots of flowers,” said Joyce, aged 74.

“In the evening we went to town in a stretch limousine and had a meal out, which was a surprise gift from our daughter Brenda.”

At the start of the marriage, Denzil, a farmer’s son from Pontrilas, bought a small holding and kept dairy cows but as the children arrived he joined the post office for a more secure and better paid job.

Denzil, who is 73, served the post office for 39 years.

Joyce, who originally came from Hampton Dene, was working as a children’s nurse but gave up work when she married.

“It was the way things were in those days. I stayed at home and managed the home. My housekeeping was £5 a week and everything we had we had to work for. My mother had taught me well so I knew how to cook, clean and budget.

“I think our lives have been harder than people have it today but we have been very happy together. Right from the start we worked as a team,” said Joyce.