'The very best of friends': Torquay couple celebrate 70 years of marriage

A couple from Torquay are celebrating 70 years of marriage this week, marking a remarkable milestone in a life filled with love, laughter and companionship.

David and Margaret Fullalove, aged 91 and 90, will mark their platinum wedding anniversary on July 30. Originally from Caerphilly in South Wales, they moved to Torbay many years ago but remain proud of their Welsh roots.

The couple met during a local dance at a youth club when they were just 16 and shared their first kiss in Oxwich, in the Gower peninsula. They married in 1955 and have been inseparable ever since.

Now grandparents and great-grandparents, they are described by their daughter Jo Gordon as “the most loving and devoted couple you could imagine”.

“They’ve been through everything together — good times, hard times — and their loyalty and humour have kept them strong,” she said. “We feel incredibly lucky to still have them both with us, happy and in good health after all these years.”

When asked the secret to a long and happy marriage, the couple agreed: “It’s about allowing each other the space to grow as individuals.”

These days, they enjoy doing crosswords together, watching The Chase and Countdown, and going on their weekly supermarket trip. They also love spending hours on the veranda, watching the world go by across the Downs and catching the cricket matches on Saturday afternoons.

David maintains an active social life, still taking the bus into Torquay harbour twice a week for a pint with friends. Margaret, a lifelong churchgoer, now joins Sunday services online from home.

A former engineer, David pursued his passion for writing in his late 80s, beginning with his memoirs. He wanted to record his childhood experiences growing up in South Wales during the war so he could leave a record for his family. 

He has self-published four books in the past three years, including Barrage Balloons and Spanish Roots, Ducking Apples, Doctors and Dai, The American Affair, inspired by the wartime tragedy at Slapton Sands, and The Weight of Secrets, a novel set in his native South Wales.

The family are planning a quiet celebration and are gathering video messages from friends, relatives and public figures to honour the couple’s shared journey.

Jo said: “They are truly wonderful parents — unfailingly supportive, incredibly loving, and the very best of friends. Even now, they still hold hands while watching TV together.”