A woman says she has found the love of her life with a man 35 years her senior – despite strangers mistaking them for father and daughter.
Danielle Sheard has been with Bob, 73, for more than four years after the pair met through a mutual connection at work.
The 38-year-old was working in a bar and says the couple bonded instantly, despite the decades between them.
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Their friendship developed into romance when retired landscape contractor Bob kissed her while watching a film.
Now, the pair say they regularly face judgment from strangers who assume they’re father and daughter or that there must be an ulterior motive because of their age difference.
“The comments usually come from people who don’t know us or who only see the age difference,” Danielle, who works in business development from Brighouse, West Yorks, told What’s The Jam.
“The biggest criticism we’ve received is that we shouldn’t be together.
“It can be frustrating because people make assumptions without knowing our relationship or the life we have together.
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“People have said that I’m wasting my life or that Bob must have money.
“It’s hurtful because it dismisses the actual relationship we have.
“But it can be funny because they are judging what they see rather than understanding who we are as a couple.
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“Someone in the airport thought I was his daughter when we were buying matching perfumes.”
Despite the comments, Danielle insists their 35-year age gap has never been an issue for them and says they are now preparing to move in together.
She said: “When we first got together, we were aware that the age difference might make some people have opinions, but the most important thing was how we felt about each other.
“The connection we had was stronger than any concerns about what other people might think.
“My first impression was that he was funny, easy to talk to and had a great sense of humour.
“We both have quite a dry sense of humour and a similar level of sarcasm, which was something we connected over.
“It wasn’t necessarily that I immediately thought ‘this is someone I’m going to have a relationship with’, but I was definitely drawn to his personality.”
Thankfully, Danielle says their families and friends have been hugely supportive.
Bob has three children who he has lost contact with since he started his relationship with Danielle.
She said: “The people who know us can see how well we get on and how much we enjoy spending time together.
“My family and Bob’s siblings support us hugely, we go on holidays together, have weekends away together and have weekend plans together most weeks, the same with family friends and my friends and colleagues.”
Though Danielle admits that the occasional generational hurdle crops up.
She said: “There are obviously differences that come with being at different stages of life.
“Bob hates social media and our fashion sense is so different.
“He loves his Skechers and I hate them.
“Bob asks for a copy of the bill everywhere we go and I’m more blasé about the cost of things but he knows to the penny.
“He hates Stanley cups and I have three
“But we have far more things that bring us together.
“Selfies drive him mad.
“He’d throw his phone in the sea, he hates how contactable everyone is 24/7.
“The biggest difference in interests is things like communication – I’d send a WhatsApp, he would make a call.”
“We both love travelling, we enjoy similar food, music and films, and we genuinely enjoy doing the same things.”
Danielle says although she’s accepted that Bob won’t be around for as long as her, the couple refuse to let fear dictate their lives.
She said: “We have honest conversations about the future, because those things matter in any serious relationship.
“We don’t ignore the realities, but we also don’t want to spend our lives worrying about things that haven’t happened.
“We have always been open about what we want from life and what our future might look like.
“We don’t plan to have any children and the future isn’t defined by an age difference.”
Danielle believes the relationship works because it is built on friendship as much as romance.
She said: “People often assume they know our story just because of the age gap, when actually we’re just a couple who enjoy the same things and make each other laugh.
“Our age gap is a strength.
“We have different life experiences, but we complement each other.
“The age difference means we can learn from each other rather than it being something that separates us.
“We’ve both learned from each other’s experiences and perspectives.
“We bring different things to the relationship, and that makes it interesting.
“Bob has a lot of knowledge of history and travelling that’s always interesting to hear about places we visit together.
“We genuinely enjoy each other’s company, we laugh together, we have similar interests, and we like doing the same things.
“We have a similar sense of humour and a strong friendship as well as a relationship.
“He’s my best friend and I’m his.
“We have so much in common that the age difference often fades into the background.”
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