Join Our Interviewers As They Talk To Our Favourite Teacher Couples About Love!

Mr Roy and Ms Daffy invite us to their best memories of each other.

Can you give the best trait to each other?

Mr Roy: I'd say Ms Daffy is very funny. She gets angry quite a lot but interspersed with her anger is a lot of humorous comments and I find that very amusing so I'd say I laugh a lot in life because of her which is a very pleasant way of spending your life.

Ms Daffy: I would say that Mr Roy is a really good listener. If I ever go to him with an issue or a problem, he always listens to what I have to say and comes up with a good solution.

What is the best memory you have together?

Mr Roy: We went to America about 2 summers ago and it was nice spending a lot of time together, walking around Washington, New York and Disneyland, drinking Butterbeer at Harry Potter Land, eating sandwiches at Central Park. My actual best memory was the sandwich itself (laughs) because it was incredible but it was nice spending it all with Ms Daffy.

Ms Daffy: My best memory was when we went to Beirut. It was our first holiday and we were really excited. It was the first time we got to spend a lot of time with each other.

Mr Roy: We spent way too long there than needed because we were there for like 8 days but a weekend was more than enough. We had run out of stuff to do in Beirut but we were so happy to spend time together. It was a really good opportunity to spend time together. And the food was really good.

What is the best gift you've given each other?

Ms Daffy: Were not very good at gifts. This is going to make him sound so much better than me (laughs) but the best gift was Mr Roy organised a surprise trip to Estonia. So I really wanted to go to see the Christmas market so he organised everything and told me about it later. They were supposed to be having the best Christmas market so we spent 2019 christmas there and it was amazing.

Mr Roy: Mine was actually this christmas. I got the new XBOX and that was the best Christmas present I ever got. I got my first PlayStation when I was 7 and when I got it I cried, I was so happy and this was similar to that. But I managed to contain my tears this time at least.

Ms Daffy: It is my biggest regret though buying it. I never get to see him anymore.

Did you find it hard to understand each other at first considering you both are from different countries with different cultures?

Mr Roy: I think we did at first because she couldn't understand my accent when we met in school mostly because I talk quickly. But mainly it was the different phrases that you don't say in both Ireland and Scotland. For example, they call a cupboard a press in Ireland for some reason. But in terms of communicating we were fine and I actually really loved the Irish accent.

How did you guys meet?

Mr Roy: We met at BSB.

Ms Daffy: I came to Bahrain like 9 or 10 years ago and joined BSB about 6 years ago. We were friends for a while and now we’re married! So we definitely deserve the best couple in BSB because we are the OG’s.

Mr Roy: We were always like 2 classrooms apart and we usually met at social gatherings and we just ended up being together.

Mr Swick and Ms Hughes-Swick talk to us about scones and being meant to be!

How has your life changed since marriage? Do you see things differently now?

Ms Hughes-Swick: Our life didn't really change after marriage, we already knew we were committed to each other before we got married. Marriage was like an excuse to celebrate our love.

Mr Swick: We had been together for about 10 years before getting married, so it was like we were already married anyways.

What's the best memory you've had together?

Mr Swick: There's too many. I love that even though we’ve been together for so long she will always try to surprise me. She would do things that i wouldnt even imagine to do.

Ms Hughes-Swick: Snowboarding and surfing were 2 great memories. We’ve learnt to do many things together and these were some of them. We went to Cornwall in October about 15 years ago and it was freezing and we learnt to surf.

Mr Swick: We had to walk across this huge field and the floor was literally ice. It was horrendous but at the same time really cool. We had a lot of fun and laughed a lot.

Ms Hughes-Swick: It was like our 85th wedding anniversary because in winter, Cornwall was mostly filled with older people and we were living the old life, drinking tea and having scones (laughs).

How did the two of you meet?

Mr Swick: We actually met when we were 11 years old and we didn't really like each other. I thought she was a bit too posh and classy for me and she didn't really like me. We saw each other regularly earlier in the youth club where kids go to hangout. And when we got too old for that we stopped seeing each other. Then my group of friends had a band and they were playing at a local establishment when we were about 16-17. I remember walking in there and seeing Ms Hughes-Swick from across the room. I made an effort to go speak to her and realised she was the same person I hated 5 years ago!

Ms Hughes-Swick: He was very small back then, shorter than me rather. He was a very good dancer and a sports fanatic. So I thought he was a bit arrogant. When we grew up he completely changed, I was shocked he was way taller, kinder and generous.

What would you say are the key things to having a successful relationship? Is it better to be like minded people or opposites?

Ms Hughes-Swick: I think a bit of both. Generally we have the same values and interests. But where I am a big worrier, like to be organised, Mr Swick calms me down and brings me back to reality. We balance each other out in the ways we were different. If we didn't have things in common it probably wouldn't be successful.

Mr Swick: It's definitely a mix of both. You have to have similar interests but you have to have your own individual traits as well. Like she is a bit of a worrier and I’m not, I am more of a risk taker. In some situations, our personality traits complement each other. If you find the right person they can help you with your flaws.

Interview Title: Mr. Macmillan and Ms. Malik give us insight on passing hurdles, cake and patience!

What is one thing that is necessary for maintaining a strong relationship?

Mrs. Malik: To maintain a strong relationship… I think all the things we’ve been through… The main one was trust...Cause everything else worked for us.

Mr. Macmillan: I think humour.

Mrs. Malik: That's the other one.

How does the fact you both work in school enhance the bond in your relationship?

Mr. Macmillan: We don’t really see each other. Because we work in different places, It didn’t really… have much effect.

Mrs. Malik: We don’t really work together, so in some way it kind of helps. Because you want to talk about stuff when you get home and bond over it. But like Joe says we don't really see each other at work, BSB is a big school it’s huge.

Mr. Macmillan: I prefer that.

Mrs. Malik: I think at some point, you kind of get filled with joy because you’re waiting for 8 hours.

Mr. Macmillan: The space is good.

Mr. Malik: Yea space brings you together, so you need a little bit of that space.

What is your favorite memory of each other?

Mr.Macmillan: In the early days, when Hanan used to bring me like little cakes.

Mrs. Malik: Yea like at the very start.

Mr. Macmillan: Yea that doesn’t happen any more. Because she doesn’t like me any more. (laughs) Like right at the start, it was really good, you would leave me cakes.

How do you think you bring out the best in each other?

Mr. Macmillan: Patience. Hanan’s got lots and lots of patience. Cause I can wind up anybody, and I can go on about rubbish stuff. So I bring out Hanan’s patience.

Mrs. Hanan: But yea I was just saying having a kid definitely brings out the best in each other

Mr.Mchugh and Mrs.Mchugh dive into the intricate details of their picture-perfect relationship and Instagram boyfriends.

How did you guys meet?

Mr.Mchugh: How did we meet uuummm… So I’d been a student president in Durham university at my college. And so even when I graduated I was still going back to do various things. And one weekend, I think it was in September, yeah September 22nd I think it was, I went back. And I was just doing some work up there for the college, but someone I knew who started his training course said that “there are a few of us coming out for a meal and drinks. Why don’t you join us?” So I went along and I met Mrs.McHugh that evening and then we got along, and then we exchanged phone numbers, caught up a couple of times and then… and that was it. I started travelling up to Durram from Manchester to go and see her on the weekends...She would probably call it bad luck but fate’s another word for it.

Is it harder or easier to be married and working in the same school?

Mr.Mchugh: I think that’s a difficult question for me to answer because Mrs.Mchugh is always in the PE department, and I’m always stuck on my computer looking at data or running around dealing with something: we don't really get to see each other that much. But we love the fact that we can travel into school together...it’s lovely to take our children in so were all in the same car and were going into school together and that’s a really nice thing so i’d say it’s an advantage but we don’t get to see a great deal of each other when we are at school.

Mrs.Mchugh: I didn’t think I would like working in the same school as Mr McHugh, as we’d had different career pathways for a long time before we got the jobs at BSB, but I actually don’t mind it. The best bit is that during the school day we can catch up about our children or ask each other to grab a coffee if we need it!

What is the biggest mistake our generation’s relationships make?

Mrs.Mchugh: Over-posting on social media. Some things are better treasured when they’re kept private.

Mr.Mchugh: Umm I don’t know whether it’s a mistake you know I’ve never been there and it could just be me being you know, like a really old man who doesn’t understand your generation. But I think me and Mrs.McHugh are always laughing at what we call the boyfriends of Instagram. It seems that the younger generation feels the need to photograph everything every 10 minutes. And the girl does every pose imaginable to show off to they’re friends and everybody in their network and for me I think it's maybe nicer to just forget about that and enjoy each other’s company a bit more. It’s a different time, when I grew up....it wasn't like it is today. But I wasn’t in my early 20s thinking I must post this on Facebook. And clearly that’s the thought of a lot of young people today.

What is your significant other’s best personality trait?

Mrs.Mchugh: Cooking! Mr McHugh is a brilliant chef.

Mr.Mchugh: What I really love about Ms Mchugh is what a good family member and friend she is. She always remembers birthdays and special events. And she’s always in touch with people and keeping up with them. And when things are tough for people that we know she’s always there to try and help out and I think that that’s one of her most endearing qualities.

What is your favorite phrase or statement that your s/o says?

Mrs.Mchugh: “Can I get you a coffee?” (laughs)

Mr.Mchugh: I would say when she uses the phrase “Daniel”. You know my full first name, most of my friends and family know me as Dan but I know that when she uses the full 2 syllable word “Daniel”, I know I’m in trouble. I wouldn’t say favorite but It’s certainly what I remember and what I regret hearing.

Aditya Arun, 13E and Yusuf Kamran 11F