Banbury residents Ruth and Arthur Morbey celebrated 70 years of marriage at Larkrise Care Centre this week. Celebrations were held at the care home where the couple have lived since the beginning of the year.

Ruth, aged 89, and Arthur, aged 91, enjoyed an afternoon tea with a special homemade cake. They also received a card from His Majesty King Charles III, and visits from family and friends.

Arthur met Ruth after he moved from his birthplace, Farnborough, to Swalcliffe in Banbury, where Ruth already lived. Several years after meeting as children, they held their wedding in April 1955.

Arthur said: “I met Ruth when I was eight, we played together as kids. I was 21 when we married at Swalcliffe church. The reception, at the village hall, cost £30. It was a lot of money in those days. I saved to pay for it all myself.”

The family has grown over the last 70 years, as Ruth and Arthur have two daughters, Lyn and Jane, four grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren.

After initially living with Ruth’s parents, the couple moved to a new build in Brookefield Rise. They later relocated to Tadmarton, where they lived for 42 years before moving to Larkrise Care Centre together in January 2025.

Arthur worked for 29 years making switchgear for power stations. After being made redundant – and using the money to buy their house in Tadmarton – he became a gardener for manor houses in Hook Norton and Tadmarton. Whilst Arthur worked, Ruth was a homemaker and spent much of her time raising their daughters and caring for their grandchildren.

The couple shared their advice for a successful relationship. Ruth said: “We like to take each day as it comes, and we try to be happy. Everyone has fallings-out, but it’s important to always make up.”

Carer at the home, Layota Thomas, said: “We all need someone to love us like Arthur loves Ruth. Even after 70 years, he still has a twinkle in his eye for Ruth.”