WARTIME sweethearts who received their seventh 'congratulations' card from the Queen this week have professed to still "loving each other dearly".

Gladys and Ronald Hamilton marked their 74th wedding anniversary on July 18, decades after a whirlwind courtship in 1942.

The couple, who live in Morrell Avenue in Oxford, met in Aberdeen where 18-year-old Mrs Hamilton made ammunition and 22-year-old Navy sailor Mr Hamilton served as a minesweeper.

Mrs Hamilton, 92, said: "A friend introduced us and we struck it off. When I saw him I knew in my heart we would end up together. A few months later we found out he was going abroad so we decided to get married.

"We were really in love and we still are. He'll always be my lad."

They celebrated the milestone by opening their house to family members, though 96-year-old Mr Hamilton, who went on to work at Pressed Steel in Cowley, is currently fighting pneumonia.

Mrs Hamilton said: "The doctor said he has a very strong personality and character.

"The family keeps him company and help with jobs round the house - they are determined to make their dad better. I don't know what I would do without him."

After their church wedding in Aberdeen, just one week after making the decision to spend their lives together, Mr Hamilton was sent to serve in Malta, Gibraltar, Algeria and Norway before returning home in 1946.

It was only then that he met his first daughter Maureen, who was two-years-old by the time her dad returned to his Oxford roots.

Mrs Hamilton said: "I had a sailor doll and always said to her 'that's dad'. As soon as he walked in she said 'hello daddy' - I will never forget that.

"It feels like yesterday that we got married, it was really a shock to find out it's been so long. We've just had really good fun, the lot of us. It's been full of laughter."

The pair, who moved from Scotland to Barton before settling in their current home, have fond memories of walking along the River Dee in Aberdeen and having picnics on the beach in Portsmouth.

They have five children including eldest Maureen Hamilton, 72, who lives with her parents, and youngest Ronald Hamilton, 57, plus eight grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

Mrs Hamilton advised couples to "give and take" to succeed in marriage and always "talk through troubles".

She hoped to pile more of the Queen's praise in their treasured box, which houses a card for their 50th anniversary, another for their 65th, and one for every year since their 70th.

She added: "We are hoping for a few more. We tell one another when we are 100, we will go hand in hand."

A spokesman for Buckingham Palace said last year in the UK, more than 500 couples celebrated 70th and above anniversaries.