To love and to cherish 'till death do us part

Sixty years ago to the day, Joyce walked up the aisle in a flowing dress made out of a parachute's silk, her bouquet of roses shaking as she tried to control the excitement of tying the knot with her fiancé Ted Hawkes.

"On that day she was just like she is now, shaking like a leaf," Mr Hawkes chuckled, clasping his wife's hand tightly in reassurance, as they posed for a photo.

Mrs Hawkes smiled as she moved to kiss her husband squarely on the lips and said: "He's still as handsome now as the day I first met him".

The British couple, who are celebrating their diamond wedding anniversary today, are still so evidently in love 60 years on.

As the two reminisce in the garden of their Maltese friends Victoria and Alfred Grima about the day they met, they constantly steal a loving glance at one another, often reaching out to hold hands.

One week after setting eyes on each other, Mr Hawkes conspired with Joyce's mum and blew his savings on an engagement ring. While his loved one was relaxing on the settee, Mr Hawkes went down on his knees and stuttered unromantically: "Do you want it or don't you?"

"You needed a magnifying glass to see the diamond," he said laughing heartily.

One year later, on June 1, 1946 the love birds got married in a Nissen hut that doubled up as "St Paul's church under disrepair" since it had been heavily bombed during World War II - it was a match made in heaven.

At the reception they served jellies, sandwiches and ham they had bought on the black market and lovingly prepared by the two families the night before and pushed 500 metres in a milk cart to the venue.

Sixty years on, the couple was honoured with a letter of congratulations and well wishes from Queen Elizabeth II and Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Though loyal Britons, Mr Hawkes, 81, and his 79-year-old wife are described by the Grima family as the best ambassadors Malta could wish for, always singing the island's praises and holidaying here for the past 40 years, sometimes even twice a year.

But what keeps them coming? Why not travel the world instead?

"When we were younger we travelled quite a bit, but we love Malta so much. This is like our home and the Grimas are our family. Everyone is so friendly here, and we feel safe," Mr Hawkes said.

The connection with the island was cemented when Mr Hawkes, who was a visual signalman in the army, had spent three weeks on the island and was struck by the people's warmth.

He had promised his new wife that once they had saved enough money they would take a trip back. In the summer of 1966 they realised their dream and booked a fortnight at the Mellieha Bay Hotel on full-board basis for Lm84.

They fell in love with the place and kept returning, sometimes bringing her mother to relax and unwind by the sea. Mellieha Bay is where the couple met the Grima family 25 years ago and they have been close friends since.

So what's the secret to their long-lasting marriage?

"He always makes me laugh," Mrs Hawkes is quick to say, adding that her husband was also honest to a fault.

"He wakes me up every morning with a cup of tea and says 'Good morning sweetheart' and before he goes to sleep he tells me that I'm still 'the best-looking girl in the world'," she said.

The couple never had children, since Mrs Hawkes had to undergo a hysterectomy at an early age, but instead of focusing on loss, it only served to bring them closer together.

"It's been a give and take relationship. We hardly ever argue and when we do we kiss and make up. Also never forget to tell your woman how much you love her," Mr Hawkes said.