London: They walked down the aisle together as man and wife thirty years ago. Now, Linda Packer and Martin have taken their vows once again - as two women.
Emma Martin, who has had a sex change, and Linda tied the knot in a civil ceremony to preserve the tax and pension rights they enjoyed as a married couple.
They got their marriage annulled after Martin decided to have a sex-change operation. He had felt unhappy with his gender since he was four.
The change in Martin's legal gender status when he became Emma meant they could not remain married under law, reports the Telegraph.
That left the pair, who described themselves as “soulmates”, facing large inheritance tax bills should one of them die.
It also caused problems with life insurance and pensions rights.
Consequently they decided to remarry, despite not being in a sexual relationship.
The couple from Little Downham, near Ely in Cambridgeshire, first married in 1977 and never had children.
Martin Packer told his wife in 1998 that he wanted to change his sex, and he subsequently underwent treatments including electrolysis to remove body hair and hormone replacement therapy, before going under the knife.
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