A warm friendship blossomed after Tom asked Libby out for lunch, which led to romance, until one fateful night. Tom gave the “I’m too old for you, you have your whole life ahead of you, it won’t work” speech.

Ever resourceful, Libby said that no one knew what the future held, and if they only got five years of happiness together, that would be much more than most people, and she considered the game “well worth the candle”.

So Tom put plans in place to set the scene for the wedding proposal. He wanted somewhere memorable and chose the top of Mt Kosciusko, in spring – no wet knees that way.

“If we had listened to what people said, we would never have married,” Tom said.

“Our wedding day was March 23, 1985. We held it in the National Rhododendron Gardens in Olinda in the Dandenong Ranges, where the reflections from the gardens in the pond made it all look magical. My sister Dorothy was the matron of honour and the celebrant was Joy Crawford. Our small wedding group then went for an afternoon tea ‘wedding breakfast’ at the Cuckoo Restaurant in the Dandenongs,” Libby said.

The honeymoon started with a huge clap of thunder and one of the fiercest electrical storms ever seen.

“As we headed for the hills on our way to Queensland, the lightning was unbelievable,” Libby adds.

A new life in their new house in Wantirna awaited the happy couple on the return from their honeymoon; that was 30 successful years ago. 

Libby worked for Australia Post as archival collection manager, and Tom was the national sales and marketing manager for Bosch appliances.

 The couple moved to Bendigo in 2010, Tom having grown up here and Libby, although never having lived here, is a fourth- generation Bendigonian. Being historical researchers and archivists, they discovered that they both have Cornish roots firmly planted in Bendigo, while Libby’s family tree includes the amazing Bartlett’s photography chap on her side.

And a tip for a successful marriage? Both say, “Talk out your problems and stay good mates”.