Kenny Wright and Linda McCauley, from Sutton Hill, Telford, are to marry

Two former schoolfriends who lost touch with each other for almost 30 years are to marry in Shropshire this weekend after being reunited on Facebook.

Linda McCauley never forgot Kenny Wright in all that time and even carried a photograph of him wherever she went.

The last time they saw each other was in 1981 when Kenny was best man at the wedding of Linda’s 51-year-old brother Roddy Holmes in London.

But thanks to their cyber meeting the 50-year-olds will now be marking their own big day at Wellington Register Office at 11am on Saturday.

Linda and Kenny, of Summerhill, Sutton Hill, Telford, were born and raised in Charlton, south east London, and attended the same primary school there.

They each went on to single-sex schools but still saw each other from time to time but that all ended after 1981 when they both went their separate ways in the capital.

Later, Kenny moved up to Telford 15 years ago to join family members and Linda moved to Plymouth but curiosity finally got the better of her.

“I had a photo of Kenny taken at my 18th birthday party and always carried it around with me, even when I went around the world,” she said.

“Then, two years ago, I was at a friend’s house and went trawling through Facebook looking for him.

“I tried searching through his primary school, with no success, and then tried his secondary and finally found him.

“I sent him a message, asking that if he was the same Kenny I was looking for would he phone me and he called the next day.”

The pair then kept in regular contact by phone but the distance between them and the cost of travelling meant that they did not actually meet face to face until Linda’s 50th birthday came around two months ago.

She said: “I pleaded with him to come down to Plymouth for my birthday and he did.”

She added: “He got on a coach, came down on October 7 and we haven’t been parted since.”

Linda has a son, Danny, aged 27, and a 29-year-old daughter, Patricia, from a previous relationship.

She also has six grandchildren.

Kenny, meanwhile, has a son, Kenny junior, aged 24, and a daughter, Rose-Marie, aged 23.

The couple plan to hold their reception after Saturday’s ceremony at the Barley Mow pub in Wellington High Street.

By Simon Hardy