DIAMOND couple John and Mary Rooke celebrated their special day among family and fellow church members.

The couple tied the knot at the close of the Second World War having met in their native Crediton, Devon.

Their marriage, which was marked at the weekend with a special message from the Queen, produced four children - three daughters and one son.

They are now grandparents to seven and great-grandparents to one.

The couple's youngest daughter, Denise Trowbridge, said her parents had moved to Dorchester in 1973 when John, now 85, took up the role of pastor at Dorchester's Cambridge Road Pentecostal Church.

Mrs Trowbridge, 48, said: "When they came here Dad began work for West Dorset District Council as a pest control officer, but they moved here because of the church."

Friends and fellow church members gathered at the church on Saturday for an afternoon of celebration for the couple.

Mrs Trowbridge says although her father now lives in a nursing home because of his failing physical health, the couple are still as strong as ever.

She said: "The whole family is very proud of them. They are a wonderful example to us all.

"I think the secret of their marriage is honesty and their faith in God, which has really kept them together.

"I would say it's certainly their faith that's been so very important to them through their lives, even back as far as their teens when they first met.

"They have