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FOR many people, working with their other half would be a nightmare. But for Bev Fox, 46, and Ian McLaughlin, 47, stars of Northern Stage's The Glass Slipper, it's been a lifesaver. "We made a decision really," says Bev. "We were at the point where we could've split up and gone touring around the country. But we looked at each other and said, 'I don't want to be apart from you,' and that's what we've stuck with."
The couple - Bev is Newcastle born and bred and Ian moved up to Washington, Tyne and Wear, from Croydon with his family aged six, have made their joint career work.
They met at the tender age of 15 and 16, and their lives have been intertwined ever since.
Bev says: "We met at the People's Youth Theatre in Heaton. I was 15, he was 16 and we were in a play called the Greeks and Trojans. It was epic.
"We were each in different sections but we helped each other learn our lines. I helped him to put his blood make-up on and we were so young we became really good friends."
Ian would stop off at Bev's house in Jesmond and then they'd walk together over Armstrong Bridge to the theatre.
But it took the interference of friends to get them together. Bev laughs: "I remember clearly my friend Amelia saying, 'so who do you think the talent is in the class?' "I was so naive I thought she meant acting talent and I went 'well I think Ian's fantastic'. They all said 'You fancy Ian' I went 'no I don't' and then I thought, 'oh maybe I do?'" The couple shared their first kiss in May 1980 in the bus stop outside the People's Theatre.
Acting continued to be a big part of their life. After a short stint living in Durham together - they were both just 16 and studying at New College, Durham - they dropped out and returned to Tyneside to work in cafes and pubs. Ian managed The Percy Arms for a while, and they acted in their spare time.
Bev continues: "We got involved in the American Musical Society at Newcastle University, although we never went to university.
"They...