When asked what the secret was to 60 years of wedded bliss John ‘Jack’ Brooks replied “Never go to bed on a grump”.
Jack and his wife Irene celebrated their Diamond Wedding anniversary with a champagne tea, as their proud son John remembered with fondness a childhood full of family fun.
Jack 84, and Irene, 89, met while working at the same Stockton bakery back in 1952.
Their son, John, a trade union official, from Hartburn, Stockton, said: “My dad had finished his national service with the Royal Army Medical Corps as a medical assistant and had got himself a job as a van driver at Sparks bakery in Stockton.
Sparks Daylight bakery
“Mum worked in the fancy room where they iced the cakes and made trifles.
“My dad was quite a fit lad - he used to be into Charles Atlas so he always had his shirt off. As soon as there was the slightest bit of sun he would have his shirt off.
“I asked my mum what she thought of Dad when she met him and she said, ‘I didn’t like him at first. I thought he was a bit of a show-off’.”
Eventually Jack’s persistence paid off and he and Irene began a romance that would last for more than 60 years.
“My mum is very funny, she was an entertainer for the troops during World War 2 so she always had a outgoing personality,” said John, adding, “She’s a larger than life character.
“Dad was a bit more straight but opposites attract I suppose.
“She gave in eventually, they got engaged and on January 29 1955 they got married.”
Irene and John Brooks from Stockton who celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary on 29th January. Collect photo from Irene and John's wedding.
Ever since Jack and Irene have lived in the same house in Orchard Road, Fairfields - a house that became their family home.
John said: “I came along April 1957. After they had me, Mum didn’t go back to work and Dad left the bakery to go into the Brooks family tradition as a park gardener.
“My great grandfather and uncle had set out Newham Grange Park in Stockton and my dad followed in their footsteps. He was there until he retired and he still loves gardening.
“I always felt I was well looked after, that I was put first - probably to the detriment of them.
“I remember our Saturday tradition of going to Leslie Brown’s toy shop in Stockton and all three of us going to the Stockton Odeon and feeling dead posh having a scone in the cafe.”
Irene and John Brooks from Stockton who celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary on 29th January. Collect photo from Irene and John's wedding.
John married Julia, 57, and together they have carried on the Brooks tradition of having a single child - 21-year-old daughter Laura.
“They love her to bits, they idolise her,” said John.
Reflecting on his parents’ 60 year marriage, John asked his dad the secret to wedded bliss.
“Selective hearing,” said Jack before adding, “Never go to sleep on a grump.”
John said: “Like anyone else, they used to argue but Mum could win it with humour. Dad would get stressed for a bit then they’d make up.
“They’ve stood the test of time.”
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