Exactly 54 years ago, on 14 July 1972, the Spanish singer Raphael and the journalist and writer Natalia Figueroa quietly married in Venice - a wedding they wanted to keep secret, but which ended up as one of the most remembered stories of Spanish showbiz.

The attempt at secrecy was almost cinematic. The guests were summoned to the airport in Madrid without being told where they were headed. But the destination leaked, and Spanish reporters soon surrounded the San Zaccaria church in Venice. Some stories simply refuse to stay hidden.

The finest detail was the dress. Natalia wore a made-to-measure white gown inspired by traditional Andalusian dresses with ruffles - an idea that came from Raphael himself, tailored by the houses of Herrera and Ollero. Instead of a classic bouquet, she held two long yellow roses in her hands - a detail still remembered today. In her hair she wore a white organza flower, and on her wrist a diamond bracelet, a gift from the groom. Raphael, for his part, wore a dark blue tailcoat.

The wedding was anything but typical. There was no dancing, no formal proposal. The feast was intimate - vichyssoise, smoked salmon, English roast beef and a classic cake - and they spent their honeymoon in New York, Las Vegas and Hawaii. Fifty-four years on, with three children and eight grandchildren, the story is still going. In an age when relationships change like the seasons, it is worth reminding ourselves now and then that lasting, too, is a beauty of its own.