A STEVENSTON couple who fell head over heels for each other after a holiday romance 53 years ago are celebrating their golden wedding anniversary.

Kay and John Tudor marked the special occasion today (Friday, February 3) - half a century on from tying the knot at Ardeer Parish Church.

A chance meeting while in Austria 53 years ago led to a holiday romance for the young couple and then a long-distance love affair, with Kay hailing from Glasgow and John from Buckinghamshire, England.

They danced the night away in Stevenston's Masonic halls following their nuptials in 1973 before heading to Majorca on their honeymoon.

On their return, the pair moved to Brize Norton, Oxfordshire where John was based in the RAF.

After the birth of their first daughter, Kirsty, and John leaving the RAF after 13 years of service, the couple moved back to Scotland and made Stevenston their home.

A second daughter, Paula, would complete their family and in time Kay returned to nursing in the maternity unit at Irvine Central before moving to Caley Court residential nursing home for the elderly as senior care assistant.

She then moved onto Canal Court, Saltcoats as their assistant officer in charge, while John retrained and became a prison officer at HMP Greenock.

Kay is also session clerk of the church she married John in and is still heavily involved in church matters to this day, while John began working as a community warden in Stevenston prior to his retirement.

He was lured out of retirement to help transport local children to their school within the Three Towns and now to the new Lockhart Campus.

The couple also have two son-in-laws, three grandsons, a great granddaughter and a great grandson and family is "the centre of their world".

All the family - and everyone at the Herald - wish them both a wonderful day.