Issue 504 – Diamond days for Semington couple

Football matches are not usually associated with romance, but that’s exactly where Semington couple Clifford and Mary Ward first clapped eyes on each other - a moment that led to 60 years of marriage.

It was 1948 when Clifford was playing football for Semington Rovers, and Mary happened to be watching the game with her brother. “She felt sorry for me - I’m sure!” Clifford told Melksham News.
The couple struck up a friendship and regularly went to dances together at Melksham’s Assembly Hall. Two years later, they tied the knot at St Michael’s Church.
Mary, whose full name is Rose-Mary, was born in Buckfastleigh, in Devon, before she moved to Semington with her family. Clifford is originally from Sheffield, and his family moved to Beanacre in 1935.
Aside from an 11 year spell as a tyre builder at the Avon factory, Clifford spent much of his working life in the building trade. Mary worked at St George’s Hospital, which was in Semington, as a nurse. They have lived together in Littlemarsh, Semington, since 1953 after taking over the house when Mary’s parents died.
“We both look after one another,” Clifford said. “We have been lucky enough to have enjoyed a few holidays together.”
They have one daughter, Linda, and a grandchild and a great-grandchild.