BBC News Online: UK: England

Seventy-seventh heaven for couple

The average marriage lasts nine years

When Fred and Olive Hodges first met, Queen Victoria was on the throne and the horrors of World War I were yet to happen.

But the couple, both aged 102, had to wait until 1925 to get wed as they scrimped together £600 to buy their first home.

The couple now live in a residential home in Wellsborough, near Market Bosworth, Leicestershire.

They have two children, 11 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.

Mrs Hodges said: "It is all about love, give and take and considering the other person.

"Love is the main thing."

Another couple who have enjoyed a long marriage are George and Grace Bateman from Leicester, whose next anniversary will be their 75th.

They have 10 children and the family now spans five generations.

Both couples have hit the headlines to celebrate National Marriage Week.

The founder of the event, now in its sixth year, recently revealed the average UK marriage lasts just nine years.