Diamond couple look back on 60 happy years together

Dec 1 2010 by Gordon Robertson, Airdrie & Coatbridge

THE wintry conditions brought back fond memories for Coatbridge couple Robert and Margery McTaggart.

They were married at Dunbeth Parish Church 60 years ago, when the town was also covered in a blanket of snow.

Now great grandparents, Margery and Robert are celebrating their Diamond Wedding anniversary.

They first met in 1946 at a dance on Islay where Margery was on a family holiday.

Robert was a local lad and “danced” the Coatbridge lass a few times.

He wrote to the woman who would become his wife and some time later “turned up in Glasgow,” where Margery worked, and their courtship began.

Robert (86) who was a mechanic during his working life, joked: “She got a hold of me and I couldn’t get away.”

Margery (84), whose maiden name was Stoddart, worked with various chartered accountancy firms and spent 12 years as a college lecturer in accounting and business studies.

The couple had two children, David and Sheena, and have five grandchildren, three great grandchildren.

Robert was a keen golfer who managed to win some trophies.

Modestly, the former member of Mount Ellen Golf Club said: “I wasn’t great but I managed to avoid making a fool of myself.”

In her spare time, Margery worked in a charity shop in Great Western Road.

So what is the secret of their long and happy marriage, the Advertiser asked the couple at their Dunbeth Avenue home.

Robert quipped: “Keep your mouth shut. Don’t say anything and get away out the road.”

Margery smiled and replied: “He’s always saying thing like that and it’s not true.

“But I remember my mother used to say ‘when he comes home put his dinner down in front of him before you tell him anything’.”

Margery and Robert will be joined by friend and family this weekend at a special celebration tea at Christine’s in Airdrie.