A CHANCE meeting in a billiard room was all it took for Iris Ellins to fall in love with Stan Dyer, and the pair are now celebrating their diamond wedding anniversary.

"The first time I saw him I knew straight away that he was the one," said Iris, now 80.

Her father, George Ellins, used to run The Institute, a club where young men could go to relax situated behind Minchinhampton Baptist Church in Tetbury Street and the family lived in accommodation there.

"The front door of the house did not open from the outside except by a very large key so my sister and I were allowed to use the side door and walk through the billiard room to reach the house," she said.

"We chatted to whoever was there at the time and that was how I met Stan."

The couple dated for three years and had to part when Stan, then 20, was called up for national service in the RAF.

Two years later - on Iris' 18th birthday - Stan proposed and the couple married at the baptist church on August 5, 1950.

They lived in a flat in Windmill Road, Minchinhampton but when Iris became pregnant with first son Graham, now 58, they moved to a cottage in Ruscombe.

Stan worked as a machinist at George Waller & Son in Thrupp, where he stayed for 33 years.

He was considered a 'key worker' so he and Iris were granted a Woolaways council house in Cirencester Road in Minchinhampton.

Second son David was born in 1954 and the family enjoyed a happy life.

Stan, now 85, was a member of various football clubs and played for both Minchinhampton and Brimscombe.

He also served as chairman of Minchinhampton Gardening Club.

Iris, a keen pianist, was in demand to play tunes at weddings and events and used to donate her time free of charge.

The pair now live in Cecily Court, Minchinhampton and have six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Iris, 80, learned how to use a computer when she retired and last year published Recollections of Minchinhampton Baptist Church.

She sold 100 copies and raised £600 for TearFund, a Christian charity for children at risk of harm.

Iris explained that the couple have a loving family, who have kept them strong over the years.

"We have a lovely family who are very affectionate," she said.

"When they visit us we all hug each other."

Stan added: "From the moment that Iris and I met we were sure we wanted to be together - there was never any doubt."

The couple will celebrate their diamond wedding anniversary, which is tomorrow, Thursday, with a family party at The Old Lodge in Minchinhampton on Saturday.