A teenage couple who split up 20 years ago are now happily man and wife after a chance meeting in a local bakery rekindled their love interest.
Estate agent Gary Statham and Claire Woodward had not seen each other since 1990, but were reunited after Claire went to work in a different branch of her employers.
Gary walked in to the shop to buy some lunch and noticed the woman behind the counter looked very familiar. The pair got together shortly afterwards when Claire sent a letter to Gary’s work asking him out on a date, as he was single at the time. Claire’s mum was extremely excited about the pair getting back together, even after such a long time apart…
“My mum was really, really happy when we got back together because she’d always liked Gary and even though 20 years had passed she compared all my other boyfriends to him.”
They moved in together a year after their first meeting and tied the knot recently. Gary’s seven-year-old son, Toby was a pageboy, while his daughter Lois, and Claire’s sister Laura, 12, were both bridesmaids.
Gary was over the moon that the love had been rekindled after 20 years apart, saying…
“When I saw her that day in Birds I honestly didn’t think she looked that different – she’s always been beautiful to me. I definitely got more than a filled cob that day – I ended up with a wife.
“We had an amazing wedding day at the beautiful Shottle Hall, surrounded by our family and friends. Now it feels as if we are moving into the third stage of our relationship.”
We think it’s an amazing story, and one that proves that love really does conquer all. We’d like to wish Claire and Gary all the best for their future together x
