A PAIR of former high school sweethearts from Inverclyde have told how they finally tied the knot on Christmas Day - more than 40 years after they first met.

Alec Galloway and Louise Wylie were pupils at Notre Dame High School in Greenock who liked each other and went on a few dates before eventually going their separate ways.

Greenock Telegraph:

The pair reconnected almost 10 years ago, started to work together and got engaged on Christmas Day in 2022.

Alec, 59, runs the Crow Cottage arts gallery in Gourock with Louise, and has revealed how a chance conversation there with their friend Rev Teri Peterson, who is a local minister, led to them getting hitched at last a year later in a ceremony where they surprised their loved ones.

He told the Tele: "We were planning to get married and we had some plans in mind, but things changed.

"Our friend Teri Peterson came in one day for a chat and asked us when we were going to get married.

"She said she would  marry us and asked what day we wanted. Lou's favourite day is Christmas Day, so she said 'I'll marry you on Christmas Day'."

Greenock Telegraph:

The pair were previously wed to different partners and have six children between them plus two grandchildren.

The family were out together having a festive meal in the gallery on Kempock Street when Teri walked in and surprised them.

Alec said: "The kids just thought that Teri was doing her Christmas rounds. Then she sat down and had a glass of champagne, and then she married us.

"We didn't want a big hullabaloo, it was very spontaneous. As soon as the ceremony was over, Louise told the kids they could get on with their Christmas dinner.

"It was lovely, it was a real surprise for the kids because no-one knew, some of our kids were there and their partners and grandchildren.

"They were shocked initially but they were really happy for us."

Louise, a former drama teacher, said it was a perfect day surrounded by their loved ones.

She said: "It was a beautiful, serene day. I couldn’t have asked for more. We spoke to a lovely registrar lady at Inverclyde Council to arrange the formalities and our dear friends from Wildfire Deli along the street made the delicious deli and Teri made everything really personal and no fuss.

"It was honestly perfect."

The pair spent five weeks in St Ives on honeymoon. Alec hired a studio there overlooking the Atlantic just a short distance from the famous Tate Gallery in St Ives.

He created 30 paintings inspired by the unique Cornish landscape and is holding an exhibition of the work, entitled Threshold, in his local gallery.

Alec said: "This body of work created in Cornwall in early 2024 marks a pivotal moment in an artist’s journey and maps a personal pilgrimage through creative expression, homage to the greats of the St Ives school of artists and the calm that marriage brings.

"It’s a honeymoon to art and love and the wonder of working at the edge of landscape, where the endless panoramic views and pounding rhythms of the sea remind us that, we are very small, but that anything is possible."

Cornwall and St Ives is a special place for Alec and Louise and the pair often spend the whole January there to recharge their batteries.

Louise, also 59, said: "It was so nice to be able to walk and read and just relax."

Alec's new exhibition at Crow Cottage Arts Gallery on Kempock Street will run for a month.