Southend's Phil and Elizabeth both have a card from Queen

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A DEVOTED couple of centenarians have clocked up almost 77 years of wedded bliss.

Philip Dean turned 100 last Friday and joined his wife Elizabeth at the milestone age with his own birthday card from the Queen.

Mr Dean celebrated with a party, which was also enjoyed by his wife and their large family.

This includes daughters Pat Ward and Silvia Kingston, who are both in their mid seventies, six grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren.

Pat said: “They still adore each other.

“I can’t imagine them without each other. If one goes, the other will follow.

“They couldn’t carry on without each other.

“We’re very fortunate to be in our seventies and still have both our parents.

“All our grandchildren are lucky to be able to know them and talk and laugh with them.

“They both still very much know what’s going on around them. In fact, my father is not impressed with a lot of things these days and thinks National Service should be brought back.

“He’s old school and believes children should be seen and not heard.”

Londoner Mr Dean was born in Shoreditch and met and married his wife in Poplar, East London.

The family moved to Southend in 1941 to stay with Mr Dean’s brother and family when Mr Dean was called up to serve during the Second World War.

Until 18 months ago, the couple, who will celebrate their 77th wedding anniversary in June, lived independently in Burfield Road, Eastwood.

They only moved in with Pat in Southend when Mr Dean began to worry about his wife losing her eyesight.

Mr Dean spent his working life in the Post Office.

He started as a messenger boy at the age of 13 and went on to work in the main sorting office at Southend, before retirement from behind the counter at Shoebury’s post office.