abused for our love!
With a 28-year age gap, life has been tricky for married couple Beth and Andy…
Often mistaken for father and daughter, 19-year-old Beth and 47-year-old Andy are actually husband and wife. The pair, who coupled up three years ago, had known each other a long time as Andy was a friend of Beth’s mum.
‘We were all like one happy family,’ says Andy, ‘At the time I never realised Beth was having these thoughts about me.’
Blossoming romance
But when she turned 16, Beth said she was serious about starting a relationship with Andy. He was delighted, despite knowing there would be a backlash from people over their 28-year age gap.
‘I was concerned about what people would think,’ says Andy, who now lives in Lancashire with Beth and their two young children, Timmy and Conway.
As expected, the relationship caused a huge rift with friends and family, and when Beth was 18 and the couple got married, there were few people at their wedding in North Wales.
Since getting together, the pair have found themselves shunned, suffered abuse on the street, had their property damaged and vile obscenities scrawled on their vehicle.
‘People have made me feel like I’m some kind of animal,’ says Andy, while Beth says she can’t go outside without getting filthy looks.
The pair are just one of five couples featured in the
documentary, which also includes American lovebirds Hattie, 82 and John, 39, who met in New York; plus Steve, 44, and wife Marion, 64; and gay couple Lawrence, 61, and his 26-year-old fiancé, Sam.
‘I just want to be treated like a normal couple,’ explains Beth. ‘The age gap doesn’t bother me. I don’t see Andy as an old man or my dad or anything like that – he’s just like a big teddy bear.’
It certainly hasn’t been an easy ride. ‘We’ve paid a high price for this relationship,’ Andy says. ‘We put on a brave face, but it kills me inside.’