Silver surfers: Couple in their 80s get married after meeting online

A couple in their 80s have married after finding love through online dating.

Silver surfers John and Judith Humphreys married on Saturday, having both been widowed five years ago after more than 50 years of marriage.

A year on from their first date, the couple from Budleigh Salterton, Devon, say they are proof of the success of online dating - as long as there’s plenty of careful vetting.

They almost gave up on their search for love online after a string of dating disasters and said others of their generation had to be careful of the risks involved.

Judith, a retired teacher and pianist who has two children Chris, 48 and Kathryn, 51, said: 'People should not try and do it on their own.

'I had the help of my two children who monitored the whole thing for me all the way through.

'They would closely vet people and when I had a date they always had to know where I was going and at what time. They would watch things very carefully.

'You have to be very careful as there are a lot of people out there not in it for the right reasons.

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'I went on several unsuccessful dates and had a break from it but I decided to give it one more try.

'I didn't see John's picture, my daughter did. She said he looked a good match and we had a lot in common.

'She said I would be a fool if I didn't arrange to meet him. We met up and I was nervous to start with. He was the complete opposite from my late husband.

'But we got along and learned to compromise.'

Judith used the site Classic Romance, while John was on Telegraph Dating and they came together due to several matching interests.

John, a former college lecturer with two children, said: 'I signed up last year for four months and went on several dates with people that I just did not click with.

'The line that most attracted me to Judith was when she described herself as an accompanist seeking a soloist for a romantic duet.

'That really got me. There are dangers to online dating and people need to go into it with their eyes wide open.

'But if you are lonely and looking for companionship there are a lot worse places to go.

'My advice would be to go to reputable agency and spend money and time on it.

'But they are not all horror stories - sometimes you are just not quite right for each other.'