A COUPLE who married as complete strangers after the bride was sold to her future husband’s family by her parents have celebrated 75 happy years together.

Ming Chu and Yau Yee Kiu Fu got married when they were just 11 years old after Mrs Fu’s mother sold her to her future husband’s family.

Despite initially being unknown to each other, the couple have enjoyed 75 years of happy married life.

The couple were born in Hong Kong in 1924 and were married in 1935, although they didn’t set up home together until they were 18.

Mr Fu was from a wealthy family which owned a string of shops and was able to buy him two wives.

He originally worked as a tailor and then on cruise ships while Mrs Fu, who was from a poorer family, worked in the home of her in-laws.

In March 1958, Mr Fu travelled alone on the RMS Corfu from his home country to England and decided to settle in Worcester, where he worked for three years before opening his first restaurant, Man Woo in Broad Street.

Mrs Fu remained in Hong Kong until 1967, when Mr Fu had enough money to pay her fare and they were able to set up home in Bath Road, Worcester. In the early 1970s, the family closed their first restaurant and opened the Diamond House in Broad Street, enjoying continued success until 1986 when the building was demolished to make way for the CrownGate shopping centre and in particular Mothercare.

The couple - who have five children, 13 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren - now live in the city centre, surrounded by their family.

Today they celebrate their 75th wedding anniversary.

Mr Fu says the secret is simple.

“We have empathy for each other,” he said. “We are a family unit with old-fashioned family values and we have a lot of loyalty and tolerance with each other.”

l Marriage lines: There is no name for a marriage that has lasted 75 years. However, a celebration of 80 years is known as an ‘oak’. The current world record is held by Herbert and Zelmyra Fisher, who have been married for nearly 87 years. The couple, from North Carolina, USA, were wed on May 13, 1924. Mr Fisher is aged 105 and his wife is two years younger.