Much of the recent focus may have been on HM The Queen - but one St Ninians ‘Lady’ and her husband were also being treated like royalty over the weekend.
Golden couple Bill and Janet Graham were congratulated by family, friends and neighbours after 50 years of marriage.
And Bill even had an extra special gift for his other half - a title of her own.
The pair combined their 50th anniversary wedding celebrations with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee on Saturday with around 70 people enjoying the sunshine and their hospitality in the garden of their home in Glasgow Road, St Ninians.
During the festivities Bill, 73, made an announcement - that he was gifting Janet the title of ‘Lady Graham of Blairadam’.
Janet, 70, laughed: “I thought he was just going to thank everyone for coming. Instead it turned out he had bought one of those plots of land that give you a title along with it. I’m tempted to register and use it!”
Janet, nee Paterson, and Bill Graham were married on 3 June 1972 in Inverleith Church in Edinburgh.
In the course of their marriage they have lived in the Scottish capital as well as in Aberdeen and came back to Stirling in 1993.
Janet’s working years were spent as a hairdresser, including some time spent as a hospital hairdresser in the likes of the Western General in Edinburgh and in Aberdeen, while Bill was a Post Office executive.
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The couple have a son and a daughter.
Daughter Rebecca McEwen and husband Alan live next door to their parents, while son Christopher and wife Karen are parents to Bill and Janet’s granddaughter Lyra, aged 14, and grandson Rion, aged 12.
Rebecca has her own cake making company, Fondlyiced, which makes everything from wedding and birthday cakes to traybakes and other goodies, and her creations were thoroughly enjoyed by the guests at Saturday’s garden party.
Janet said: “Rebecca did the cakes and barbecue and also organised for Johnson of Booths4U to come along with a photobooth, which turned out to be really popular. Johnson couldn’t have been nicer.”
What everyone wanted to know, however, was the secret to Bill and Janet’s 50 happy years together.
“Patience with each other,” said Janet. “And he has to do everything I tell him....”
