Robert and Myra found the key to love

Friends worked hard to introduce a couple over half a century ago and their love for each other has kept them together ever since.
Robert and Myra NewlandsRobert and Myra Newlands
Robert and Myra Newlands

Redding’s Robert Newlands first set eyes on Camelon girl Myra Strang in a gramophone shop in 1951 when she was just 17.

Robert (86) said: “We met through mutual friends and they did a lot of work to bring us together.”

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The couple were married in Irving Parish Church in Camelon on September 23, 1957, after Robert, a plumber by trade, returned home from his national service with the RAF.

Robert and Myra on their wedding day in 1957Robert and Myra on their wedding day in 1957
Robert and Myra on their wedding day in 1957

“We got serious when I came back,” he said. “The reception was at Brightons Masonic Hall – I had to buy all the food and booze and it came to £25.”

The couple set up home in Camelon and Robert became a foreman plumber and travelled far and wide with a variety of firms, while Myra (83) worked as a bookkeeper and an auxiliary nurse in the maternity ward of Falkirk Infirmary.

The couple had three sons, Derek, Ivor and Norman, and now have five grandchildren.

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A stylish electronic keyboard which sits in the couple’s living room allows Robert and Myra to indulge in their shared passion of piano playing.

Robert and Myra on their wedding day in 1957Robert and Myra on their wedding day in 1957
Robert and Myra on their wedding day in 1957

They celebrated their diamond anniversary last week at Falkirk Golf Club with family and friends.

Robert said: “We didn’t even think about how long we would be married for.

“We never really fell out – although we did have a lot of rows.”

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