Roy and Christine Cudlipp

ROY Cudlipp will spend the morning of his 60th wedding anniversary doing the same thing he did on his wedding day – working on the farm.

Luckily, his wife of six decades, Christine, is still just as passionate about the family business and quite used to him popping out to help with the cows.
Anyway, she says, at least it gives her a bit of peace and quiet.

They have lived in Trinity since they married in 1949 and, as they celebrate their diamond anniversary this weekend, their lives are still entwined with the farmhouse that has been home to them, their children and their grandchildren.
Roy (82) gets what could only be described as a cheeky glint in his eye as he recalls how they first met in 1947.

‘In those days, all the girls would walk from St John’s Church to St Mary’s Church and the boys would ride up and down on their motorbikes,’ he says.

‘It was a way of meeting girls because you would offer them a lift home.
‘But you didn’t have a hope in hell if you didn’t have a motorbike because you couldn’t put them on the handlebars of a bicycle!’

Christine (79) was happy to accept a lift home and so taken with the young motorcyclist that she agreed to a second meeting.

‘I thought he was very nice,’ she says. ‘I was very pleased to carry on seeing him.’

They were married two years later and after a honeymoon in England, returned to their new marital home in Trinity.

‘We were very fortunate that my father bought us a farm,’ Roy says.

‘The house had been empty for about a year because we were not allowed to move in before we were married. My father would not have had that! It was great because we had never had breakfast together before and it was all a bit of an adventure.’

Christine had also grown up on a farm so they were both eager to start their own business growing potatoes and keeping cows.

It was hard work but we enjoyed it and we enjoyed working together,’ Roy says.
Their workload increased when they had their three children, Sheila, Jenny and Chris, and seven grandchildren quickly followed.

Our family is everything,’ Christine says. ‘Having our children made everything worthwhile and we have always said children are better than going on holiday.’
Their son Chris later took over the farm but Roy has always remained involved and still helps out whenever he can.

‘I worked on the morning of my wedding day and I will be working on the morning of our 60th anniversary,’ he says. ‘To me, farming will never be boring.’

They say the secret to such a long relationship is simple. ‘It’s all about give and take,’ Christine says. ‘We also have the same interests in life and though we would not say we have never argued, it is never long lasting when we do.’

Their interests have included Roy’s 20-odd years of volunteering with the honorary police, Christine’s work with the Trinity baby clinic for more than 30 years and a shared interest in Jersey French. They have belonged to L’Assemblié Jeriase for more than 20 years and hope that the language will continue to be used in Jersey in the future.

‘We speak it on holiday if we want to say something to each other that no one would understand,’ Christine says. ‘It can be very useful.’

And whether it is English or Jèrriais they are speaking, they still have a lot to say after 60 years.

‘We still always have something to talk about,’ Christine says, ‘even if it’s just about what’s happening at the farm that day.’