Valentine's Day: Loved up Corby couple to celebrate 24 years of marriage after chance encounter at house party following divorces

This newspaper, over the next two weeks, will be sharing the love stories of married couples who met in Northamptonshire in the run-up to Valentine's Day
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

A Northamptonshire couple is celebrating 24 years of marriage after a chance meeting at a house party in 1997.

Cathy Finnerty, 49, from the village of Weldon near Corby, was a 25-year-old part time shoe shop worker in Northampton town centre and a recently divorced single mother-of-one when she was invited to a house party that changed her life forever.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Cathy said: "I was invited to a friend's birthday party and, unbeknownst to me she had invited a neighbour, Martin, thinking we were well suited. On arrival to the party, I was instantly attracted to Martin and asked him to look after my bottle of rum.

Happily married for 24 years: Martin, 59, and Cathy Finnerty, 49, sharing a kiss on one of their country walks.Happily married for 24 years: Martin, 59, and Cathy Finnerty, 49, sharing a kiss on one of their country walks.
Happily married for 24 years: Martin, 59, and Cathy Finnerty, 49, sharing a kiss on one of their country walks.

"I was playing it cool and though he was flirting with me most of the night. It wasn’t till much later on that I enjoyed a dance with him."

When Cathy was asked what initially attracted her to her now husband, Martin - who was 35 at the time - she said she liked that he was 'a bit rough looking' and said that he was very funny but not in a way that was 'in your face.'

The attraction was certainly mutual as Martin gave her a lot of compliments about how she looked and her dancing.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Cathy, through laughter, added: "He tried to be smooth - he thinks he's smooth but he's not."

That evening, they enjoyed dancing to 'Wonderwall' by Oasis and 'You Do Something to Me' by Paul Weller, which was the song played at the first dance at their wedding a year later.

It turned out the couple were in a very similar boat - both separated from their former partners and they were each the parent of one child. Cathy had a three-year-old girl called Eleanor and Martin had a four-year-old boy called Aaron.

Cathy and Martin, from there, enjoyed many evenings in together watching films and gradually getting to know one another better.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Soon enough, Martin dropped down to one knee and popped the question. A date for their wedding at the Guildhall was arranged for May the following year, however, Cathy fell unexpectedly pregnant with their daughter, Chloe. This prompted them to move the date forward to February.

Cathy, on the decision to get married, said: "When you know, you know - there was no point waiting around. He had to propose a few times because I kept saying no as I was worried about the heartbreak I suffered from my previous relationship.

"He seemed too perfect - I thought, 'there's got to be something wrong with him, he must be drinker or something' but no. You just have to trust and let yourself go with it."

The newly-weds went on to grow their family to a total of four children - their daughters Eleanor, 28 and Chloe, 24, and their sons Aaron, 29, and Ethan, 22.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

It was not all smooth sailing from there, however. It was Cathy's dream to be a nurse so she gave up her job so that she could undertake training to do so. This meant, however, that the family went through a difficult period of financial struggle.

A blessing in disguise saw Martin offered a well paid job in Qatar but this meant he had to spend four years working there, which Cathy found 'very hard.'

Cathy said: "I was heartbroken. I was in tears most nights. It was very hard because we were so close. He could only come home to visit a couple of times a year so I used all of my annual leave to fly out to see him every chance I had. We Skyped every day."

The excruciating four year wait was worth it because Martin's job meant they could buy the cottage of their dreams in Weldon around three years ago.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

With the encouragement and loving support from her husband, Cathy qualified to be a nurse in 2007. She now works as a Macmillan clinical service manager for oncology at The Three Shires Hospital.

When Cathy was asked what she loves the most about her husband, she said: "He is very caring and considerate. He has been working from home and he would cook me my dinner and basically wait on me.

"He would never not help. If I am knackered and say I have got to hoover, he would just do it. He's very selfless. If he got a grand, he would just give it to me. He's just lovely and he's not cocky or arrogant or selfish. He's happy and he will do whatever he can to make me happy. I am so so lucky and I know I am and I do tell him I appreciate him all the time."

Cathy and Martin love nothing more than going for long country walks, enjoying the views and nature around them. Every time they pass through a kissing gate on their countryside ambles, they share a quick kiss themselves.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Now, for the ultimate question: this newspaper asked Cathy what the secret was to a long and happy marriage.

She responded: "Communication. It is very rare we row and, if we do, we talk things out. If I got to the point where I am being annoying, he would just tell me 'wind your neck in babe.' I am a great believer in communication as I do with all my patients. It's the same in relationships."

Cathy and Martin are celebrating their 24th wedding anniversary on Monday, February 7 and they will commemorate this by journeying down to the White Cliffs of Dover and watching the sun rise together.

Did you meet your partner in Northamptonshire? Are you celebrating a wedding anniversary this year? Send a picture of you and your partner along with the story of how you met to [email protected].