Last updated at 17:57, Monday, 21 January 2013

LONG-LOST family members are to be reunited – after being brought back together by an article in the Evening Mail.

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Platinum wedding anniversary couple Bessie and Roly Fry are to be reunited with relatives they have not seen in almost half a century.

In December the Evening Mail carried the story of the couple’s 70th wedding anniversary, reporting how they were still as in love now as when they first met in 1940.

And the article caught theattention of former Barrow resident Barbara Trippier, who now lives in Thornton Cleveleys, near Blackpool, who quickly recognised 92-year-old Mrs Fry as her long-lost cousin.

After Mrs Trippier, 73, made contact with the Evening Mail, the pair were able to swap numbers and organise a reunion.

She is also hoping that Mrs Fry can help solve the mystery of what happened to her father, who she only knows was reported missing during the war.

Mrs Fry, of Troutbeck Gardens, Barrow, said: “It is a long, long time since I saw her. Maybe about 40 or 50 years now. She was only a girl then.”

To make up for lost time Mrs Trippier, whose maiden name is Ballantyne, plans to visit Barrow soon to catch-up on family news.

She said: “I am going to come up in February.

“We had a chat on the phone but I want to see her as well.’’

The pair talked about their parents during the phone call.

Mrs Fry’s mother, Margaret Cameron, and Mrs Trippier’s mother, Sophia Ballantyne, were part of a large Barrow family with 14 children in total.

Mrs Fry is looking forward to the meeting. She said: “It will be nice to see her. We will have a lot to talk about!”

First published at 17:30, Monday, 21 January 2013
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk