A SHARED love of classical music brought together Pershore couple Peter and Carole Brookbank who celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary on Thursday, June 18.
A chance meeting at a classical music society event in Tottenham, Middlesex, now North London, led to a relationship which saw the couple enjoying a variety of operas and concerts in the London area together for over five years until Peter finally popped the question.
At the time Peter, who had begun his career as a telegram boy with the GPO was training as an electrical engineer and his future wife Carole Coster was a biology teacher at a school in the capital.
Peter and Carole Brookbank on their wedding day in 1966.
The couple were married at All Hallows Church, Tottenham and moved to Chelmsford shortly after the wedding.
“But money was tight in those days,” said Peter. “Although we had a new home we had no money for much furniture and could not even afford a honeymoon.” They put that right later with a honeymoon in Spain.
Peter and Carole moved to the Vale in 1978 living first at Pinvin before moving to their present home in Station Road, Pershore, where they brought up their three children Rebecca, Victoria and Aaron.
When they first came to Pershore, Peter got a job with Metal Castings in Worcester but within a year he was made redundant – on Christmas Eve.
He resolved never to work again to work for another company and instead struck out on his own forming, V and R Design Services which provided solutions to the electrical industry.
In more recent times Peter has become well known in Pershore serving in St John Ambulance as community first responder, as a Pershore town councillor for ten years standing down in 2023.
He remains an active member of Pershore Heritage and History Society which runs the town’s heritage centre, currently serving as both chair and treasurer.
After their third child Carole left teaching to focus on raising the family.
A keen gardener, she also loved concerts and travelling. The couple also shared a mutual enthusiasm for walking which they did regularly. Carole has always been an avid reader of historical novels.
Asked about their recipe for 60 years together Carole said it was down to ‘tolerance of each other’s foibles’ whilst Peter said: “We may have arguments but they are soon forgotten and we always make up afterwards.”
To celebrate the family are organising a small diamond wedding celebration at their daughter’s house in Pershore.
The couple have four grandchildren Sasha, Jemima, Sophie and Freya.
