A GWENT couple with a combined age of 151 have completed Europe's longest zip wire for charity.

Jim Cousins, 79, and his wife Marion, 72, from St Dials, Cwmbran, completed the Zip World Velocity zip slide in north Wales to raise funds for Cancer Research UK.

The whole family made a weekend of the event and with thanks to generous family and friends, the couple who have been married for 53 years have raised £1,250 for the charity.

Mrs Cousins said the idea came about last year when the zip wire appeared on TV while everyone was together for a family dinner.

She said: "I said I would love to have a go on that - I never expected to do it but my children for Christmas bought me and my husband tickets. I though I've got do it now and that if I was going to do it I would like to do it for charity."

The couple with nine other family members took part in the zip wire which is 500ft in the air and is a mile long above a quarry.

Mrs Cousins said: "You have to go on the short one to try it out before the big one - I said will the short one count as me doing it but they said no. I asked a lady who worked there how long it takes to get to the bottom and she said less than a minute - I thought I can hold my breath for that long let's go for it."

The mother of three who has six grandchildren and one great-grandson said it was the most frightening minute of her life.

She said: "My husband was a lot braver than me. I had my eyes shut the whole way down - he didn't.

"I didn't open them again until I heard a voice at the bottom."

Mr Cousins, who worked as a painter and decorator before retiring, said it was quite an experience and that he has since caught the adrenaline bug. He said: "When you pushed off at first it was awfully near to the ground but then when you go over the edge over the lake you’re soaring through the air - the sensation of flying that's the bit I enjoyed."

The charity is close to the couple’s heart as Mrs Cousins lost her father to cancer and Mr Cousins lost both of his parents to the disease.

She added: "We're very grateful to everyone who has donated. It's a splash in the ocean but hopefully it will help somebody."

To donate visit justgiving.com/marionandjim/