ONCE childhood friends, Michael and Clara Casserley have already enjoyed 70 years of happy marriage and are one of Britain’s longest-living married couples.
Now the pair are about to celebrate another remarkable milestone. On August 3 Michael will turn 101 and
Clara will be 100 the next day. They grew up in neighbouring Coronation Street-style terrace roads in Hulme, Manchester, and have actually known each other for more than 90 years.
Yesterday when asked for the secret of such a long-lasting marriage, Michael joked: “To agree with the wife.”
He added: “It’s important to give each other space when you have a disagreement. Screaming and shouting at each other won’t solve the situation.”
Clara chipped in: “And don’t forget you also have to put up with one another.”
They put their long lives down to a regular drop of Scotland’s other national drink – Irn Bru. The couple, who now live in Stretford, Greater Manchester, grew up just 500 yards away from each other in the cobbled terrace streets of Hulme.
They always had a soft spot for each other but romance did not blossom until the Second World War when they realised they were destined to be together.
When Clara heard he was returning from fighting the Germans she rushed to meet him at the station and the pair wed in 1945.
Michael said: “When I came back from the war Clara was waiting for me at Central Station. We ended up getting married just after.”
The couple have four children between them – Elaine, 66, Chris, 68, Robert, 70 and Ernest, 73 – and a dozen great-grandchildren.
After the war, Clara worked as a manager at a textile company. Michael worked in various departments of Dunlops department store in Deansgate, Manchester. Later he worked for 10 years in the gas industry.
The couple will celebrate their special birthdays at a big family party at Trafford Water Sports centre on Sunday, July 31. The pair used to enjoy shopping together at Manchester’s Arndale Centre and having a cappuccino at the mall’s coffee shops.
But Michael suffered a fall two years ago that has left him mostly housebound.
Clara explained: “We used to enjoy going out, visiting Caffe Nero every day.
“Now we both struggle to walk far and have to use support trolleys, so can’t go any more.”
The number of centenarians living in the UK has quadrupled over the past 30 years. According to the Office for National Statistics, there are nearly 15,000 centenarians living in the UK.
Last Christmas the Daily Express told how Karam and Katari Chand, from Bradford, West Yorkshire, had broken records after marrying in India at a Sikh ceremony on December 11, 1925, when the country was under British rule.
When they took the title of Britain’s oldest married couple they celebrated with a big family party.
The couple moved to Bradford from India in 1965 and have eight children, 27 grandchildren and 23 great-grandchildren. Mr Chand stressed that the most important part to a happy marriage is to have “no secrets and to not argue”.
