My husband and I have a 22-year age gap. We're living proof that 'unconventional' relationships work.

• I was 24 when I started dating my now husband, and he was 46.
• At first people would ask him if I was his daughter.

I was 24 years old when I first started dating my now-husband. He was 46.

I had known of Chris for a while, as he was the manager of an Indie Pop band in Manchester called Northern Uproar. My friends and I would regularly watch the band during the 1990s. But it wasn't until 2002 when we hit it off at a gig at the city's Music Box, and we haven't looked back since.

People asked him if he was my dad

With a large age gap, our relationship did raise a few eyebrows, particularly in those early years. "Is that your daughter?" or "He's old enough to be your father" were regular comments we'd attract, mostly from strangers.

While a little awkward, such remarks never really fazed us, and we'd laugh them off. Recognizing how happy we were together, our family and friends never showed any disapproval or judgment and have always been positive about our relationship. Their enthusiasm certainly helped put my mind at ease, as, if I'm entirely honest, I did have a few niggling doubts earlier on.

My biggest concern has always been that we wouldn't grow old together, like couples of similar ages. But I let my heart rule my head, and 21 years later, and don't regret it for a moment.

He is adventurous

Chris has always been the adventurous, non-conforming type. His love of travel, music, and adventure always attracted me to him. We were like two kindred spirits.

We spent our first year together living in a remote ski resort in Switzerland, where we worked in local hotels, dabbled with mountaineering, attempting — unsuccessfully — to climb the Mönch, the middle peak of an iconic trio of mountains that dominated the view from our then home in the Bernese Oberland.

When the work in Switzerland dried up, we returned to south Manchester for a while, only to head off traveling again less than a year later in an old Transit van, which we had converted into a campervan. We meandered our way through France and Spain, pulling up at makeshift campsites and discovering off-the-beaten-track hamlets and villages. Those carefree days, living frugally in a DIY campervan, were some of the best days of both our lives.

We have 2 kids together

We eventually settled in a remote hamlet in a mountainous farming region in the Granada province of Spain. In 2004, we used some savings to buy an old farmhouse, in the days when the pound was high against the euro, and such property in Spain cost next to nothing. We spent the next nine years renovating the farmhouse and selling secondhand items on the local "rastros" — car boot sales — to earn a living. In 2006, our first son Frankie was born, and two years later, we had our second son, Charlie. We relocated back to Britain in 2012, predominantly for work purposes, and our beloved Spanish home has been relegated to a holiday home.

I defy anyone who claims relationships with large age gaps don't work. You can throw all the cliches in the book at me, such as "you'll have nothing in common," or that the older partner is controlling, and the younger partner has Daddy issues.

Chris and I have everything in common — music, a love of the outdoors, and a sense of adventure. Our relationship has always been built on mutual respect. There have never been any controlling issues at play.

We've had 20 years of romance, fun and adventure. Here's to the next 20.