Brothers and wives from Huntingdonshire celebrate ruby wedding anniversaries after marrying a week apart

Two brothers and their wives celebrated their ruby wedding anniversaries after marrying just a week apart 40 years ago.

Keith Woolstenholmes married Judith Carrington at Ramsey St Mary’s Parish Church on July 13, 1974, after meeting at school. Exactly one week later on the following Saturday, Keith’s older brother Niven, now a porter at Hinchingbrooke Hospital, married Marina Skeels at Chatteris Parish Church.

The two brothers had not planned on getting married so close together, it was pure coincidence. Keith, 60, who works for Hunts Timber, said: “It just happened that way. We knew we were both getting married but it was just a matter of organising dates with the vicars and so on.”

The brothers were also kept busy as they were best men on each other’s special day.

Niven and Marina, from Greenfields, St Ives, have two daughters, Sarah and Victoria, and three grandchildren, Megan, seven, Georgina, two, and Archie, three.

The couple travelled to Italy to celebrate their anniversary and were due to be joined by Keith and his wife, but they were unable to fly out as their dog was ill.

Judith, 58, said the secret to her long relationship was working together and being supportive of each other. Keith and Judith, from Ashbeach Road in Ramsey St Mary’s, have three children, Melanie, Joanne and Alan. They are also grandparents to four – Sophie, four, Charlie, one, Louis, four and Emily, two.

The couples celebrated their anniversaries with a meal at the Dolphin Hotel, St Ives.