The couple from Runcorn cruised with Ocean Village in 2008 to see if they would like it. They enjoyed it so much they came back a year later and we had the pleasure of making it an anniversary to remember.
A celebration meal in James Martin’s Bistro was organised to celebrate 60 glorious years of marriage, and to top it off a personalised card from HRH The Queen was delivered while they had Champagne breakfast on the Bridge with our some of our senior offices which included Captain Angelo Vago and Hotel Director Alyn Baker.
The couple met in 1948 when Joseph had left the army as one of Joseph’s friends was married to Brenda’s sister. They met at a leaving party for that friend and immediately started courting.
After 12 months of courting, Joseph popped the question in the unlikely place of a “Top Deck Bus” on the way back from a shopping trip to Warrington. Brenda said yes straight away but Joseph had the daunting task of seeking permission from Brenda’s father who luckily also said yes.
The wedding took place on the 10th December 1949 at St. Michaels Church in Runcorn and was a white wedding in a funny sort of way. Brenda wore blue, but outside it had been snowing so everywhere else was covered white! From there, they celebrated the marriage with a honeymoon in Blackpool.
Joseph says the secret of the lasting marriage is there are no secrets, a bit of give and take is needed and they are best friends. They have both lived in Runcorn all their lives and are both active especially when they both go sequence dancing which keeps them fit.
One of the reasons they chose Ocean Village is the informality of the cruise, the fact it is so easy going and you are not tied to times for the meals - “It’s fantastic” they both said.
Alyn Baker,Hotel Director, Ocean Village
The event was carried over 2 days and featured some great events including:
The Ship’s Company supported the event by dressing up as Little Brittan Characters and we even had Paddington bear helping us out as Pudsey was busy in the UK.
The above picture shows two couples with Captain Hutley on the sail away, which raised a total of £750 alone.
From left to right - Colin Pomeroy (Food and Beverage Director), Tim Newman (Entertainment and Retail Director), Tracy Clegg (Entertainment and Retail Director), Daljit Sharma (Hotel Director), Angelo Vago (Captain), Jim Lakin (Chief Engineer), Caroline Cromarty (Personnel Development Manager).
The show started at 10.30pm and the theatre was full to the gunnels. First on were our resident singers Katy Reilly, Chlor Du Pre and Simon Ledger we then introduced Will Martin who sang Nights In White Satin. Like a true tenor, he finished the song in Italian, to great cheers from the audience. Jaki Graham then came on stage and the dancefloor sprang to life when she sang "Ain't Nobody (does it better than you)".
The Double Impact boys then took over with a disco medley which kept the audience on its feet and then Steve Larkins came on to close the show with his Freddie Mercury tribute act. 
He dedicated "We Are The Champions" to all the crew and passengers and as he came to the end of the song a procession of crew from all departments made their way to the stage to join in with the final chorus. This was a really emotional scene as the crew and audience hit the last notes together. There were people in the audience in tears as the confetti exploded to signal the end of what had been a truly fitting way to send Ocean Village Two off to its new home.
It's been great being on board for Ocean Village Two's farewell cruise and I hope you've enjoyed reading my blogs as much as I've enjoyed writing them.
He gave an ‘Up Close and Personal’ informal chat to passengers along with a live performance singing hits from his Number 1 album as well as some of his favourite songs by Elton John, Billy Joel and Crowded House.
Will performed as the opening vocalist in the 
The staff hosted different themed activities including ‘Bat The Rat’, ‘Ball in the Hole’ and ‘Hook a Duck’ where the passengers competed against each other to win some great prizes, with the top prize up for grabs being an Action Ashore tour of their choice in either 
The Ocean Village spirit lives on!
It was just like an on board version of his BBC hit show ‘Saturday Kitchen’. Gastro-maestro James was assisted by Kenny, who has worked in James’ on board Bistro as Head Chef, to demonstrate how to cook the perfect steak commenting “the steak should be soft enough to eat with a spoon”.
At the end of his hour-long demonstration James showed the crowd how to spin sugar before taking the time to meet the passengers, and sign copies of his book and souvenir plates from the Bistro as well as pose for memento photographs for over an hour, something which was hugely appreciated by the passengers.
Top celebrity TV chef James will be back on stage over the next couple of days in an ‘Up Close and Personal’ chat show to talk about his appearance on ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ as well as his prime-time BBC show ’Saturday Kitchen’.
The top decks were full to see the Russian national (who now lives in Dubai) perform 2 half hour shows. She wooed the passengers with some mind-boggling moves and dance combinations and was on stage for the final 30 minutes of our call in Dubai, before we set sail for Cochin, India.
For those of you that don’t know, 
Around 800 people joined us on the top decks in ideal weather conditions to watch the farewell show perfectly delivered by the international cast of singers, dancers and aerialists. 
High quality copies of the photo are being sold on board Ocean Village Two with all profits being donated this year's Poppy Appeal.
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