Couple in tears over £80 restaurant bill after confessing tragic news to waiter

14 January 2024 , 15:09

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Dawn and Paul Molineux (Image: Paul Molineux)

A couple celebrating their golden wedding anniversary were left in tears after a restaurant paid for their meal.

Paul and Dawn Molineux, who first met when they were just teenagers, had planned a big party but decided to have a quiet dinner at Hickory's Smokehouse before the main event. The couple from Southport were taken aback when they received their bill and found that the restaurant had covered the full cost of their meal as a gift for their special day.

Paul, 68, said: "When you book the table they asked if it was something special, so we put down that it was our anniversary. When they seated us they had put down a sign celebrating our anniversary.

Peter opened up about his terminal cancer diagnosis (Paul Molineux)

Dawn 'burst into tears' when she saw the bill (Paul Molineux)

"Our waiter James asked us about our anniversary, and asked us when we began dating and about our life together. In the end we told him that I've got terminal cancer."

The couple were "gobsmacked" when they saw the bill, which came with a note wishing them a "happy anniversary", reports the Liverpool Echo. Paul said: "When he put the bill down we opened it and it said happy anniversary, the bill is on us. It was an 80 quid bill too.

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"I just saw the look on my wife's face from across the table and thought have they got this wrong. She more or less broke into tears. We were gobsmacked. We had to go and find the bloke. We said you're joking aren't you?"

The couple have been married for nearly 50 years (Paul Molineux)

James explained that their heart-touching story moved him - mentioning Paul's health battle, which has left him with only a few months to live. The couple, who are parents of three grown-up kids, plan to throw a big party at the end of August - seeking to make the most of their time while Paul is still with them.

"I can honestly say in those 50 years the amount times we've fallen out I can count on one hand," Paul continued. "It is difficult with the diagnosis, but we laugh about it. We totally intend to live life to the fullest and we've got plans for a big anniversary party in Southport. People will be coming from all over. Luckily I've taken to chemo quite well. So many people get such bad side effects."

* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]

Chiara Fiorillo