A British officer and his lady return to relive their wedding

A British officer and his lady return to relive their wedding
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 30: In 1936, an British Army officer came on a posting to India, met Maxine Mitchell at the Delhi Gymkhana Club, and lost his heart forever.

Today, Brigadier (retd) William T. Magan was back in Delhi to relive the magic of the day he walked down the aisle with Maxine at the Catholic Church of Redemption, near Rashtrapati Bhavan. Magan, now 92, and Maxine, 84, took part in a moving ceremony at the very church where they had exchanged their vows, their son George and his wife Wendy by their side.

Around 20 members of Magan's former Hodson's Horse regiment (Indian Army) were also there at the ceremony. The couple were later taken to the Imperial hotel for a reception in their honour. And after that, they were off to that great monument of love, the Taj Mahal.

Maxine's father Sir Kenneth Marshall, who was also serving in India, resided at 9, Race Course Road. They left the country in 1945, two months after their son George was born, but India was never too far away.

For George, India meant a collage of images as his parents had seen it: ``I would hear of elaborately decorated elephants; of lavish parties at the Viceroy's residence; of Indian princes clothed in gold and drowning in jewels. This is my first visit to India and though a lot has changed one still sees signs of grandeur in the walls of the Red Fort.''

George, in fact, was born at the Willingdon Nursing Home (now Ram Manohar Hospital), and their youngest son James who was earlier in the army now works for the Missionaries of Charity in Gurgaon.

Recalls Brigadier Magan, ``Delhi was so different then. There were no cars. Just a couple of tongas, bailgaris and tram routes for horses. The city was smaller, with gardens all over the place. And there was no smog and no noise pollution.''

After the couple returned to England, Magan rose to the rank of brigadier, retired and settled in Kent. He has also been a director of the MI5 for one-and-a-half decades, and has authored two books, including The Story of Ireland.