A mourning Patti Newton reflects on her 1974 engagement to Bert Newton on its anniversary

Patti Newton has marked the anniversary of her engagement to Bert Newton on January 26, 1974, with a heartstring-pulling tribute.

The 76-year-old shared a picture of the then-young couple posing with their friends after the television legend popped the question on her Instagram.

She reflected on the life-changing moment that marked the beginning of the most important partnership in the post’s caption.

“Bert and I were engaged today in 1974 on the QE11. Donna Fayette and I had been entertaining onboard for 8 months,” she began.

Patti continued to explain how Bert manufactured his glorious announcement.

“Bert arrived on board as a surprise and asked me to marry him, best YES I ever said. Miss you so much xx,” she wrote.

A slew of touched fans took to her comment section to share their well wishes and admiration for her late husband, who passed away in October 2021, aged 83.

One shared, “All anniversaries are hard. How special to have such beautiful memories. Sending love x,” and another commented, “Bert always loved only you ❤️.”

The mythology of their love story has permeated through the hearts of Australians.

Bert and Patti first met when the two of them were radio child stars and then moved on to work together at Channel Seven.

The pair stayed in contact throughout their teens and twenties, with Patti even inviting Bert to her 21st birthday party before moving to the UK to further her career.

It was then that Bert knew that Patti was The One.

“I was working on the QE11 in 1974 43 years ago. Bert surprised me and got on board and asked me to marry him. A wonderful Australia Day and the best thing I ever did xx,” she penned on Instagram in 2017, when she first revealed the details of their engagement.

Since their wedding day, Bert and Patti welcomed two children, Lauren, 40, and Matthew, 44, and six grandchildren.

The soulmates would have celebrated their 47th wedding anniversary on November 9, 2021.