A couple have become the country 's first husband and wife Bishops . The appointment of Alison White , 58 , as Bishop of Hull means she joins husband Frank , 65 , the current acting Bishop of Newcastle , at the top level of the Anglican Church . Her success in become the country 's second only woman Bishop will cause upheaval to the Right Rev Frank White 's domestic arrangements . The couple , who have been married for 33 years and have no children , are moving their family home to the Hull area and Frank will regularly make a 145 mile commute north to Newcastle – staying for much of the week in a 'pied-a-terre . ' The appointment of Alison White ( right ) , 58 , as Bishop of Hull means she joins husband Frank ( left ) , 65 , the current acting Bishop of Newcastle , at the top level of the Anglican Church . The couple , who have been married for 33 years and have no children , are moving their family home to the Hull area . Despite serving long careers in the church , Mr and Mrs White have never worked together before . Although his official title is Assistant Bishop – the Bishop 's post in Newcastle is currently vacant – Alison insists she will not outrank her husband when she is consecrated in July . ' I do n't think the church works like that in terms of rank , ' she said . 'It is extraordinary that we have both had the calling to be Bishops of the church . 'In all this time we have never worked together . Our gifts are quite different and we are different sorts of people . ' The Rev Canon Alison White described the news as 'absolutely wonderful ' . 'It 's an amazing surprise to me I have to say , ' she said . And writing on the diocese website , she said : 'This is an adventure I had never imagined setting out on . ' Adding : 'You may have noticed that I am married to a Bishop . This may seem excessive ! You would think that one in a family is more than enough . Believe me , this has crossed our minds . ' Rev Canon White said having another Bishop in the family gave her no advantage in getting the Bishop of Hull 's job . 'The only word he put in for me was with God , ' she said . The Rev Canon Alison White ( pictured ) described the news the news she was being appointed Bishop of Hull as 'absolutely wonderful ' Rev Canon White said having another Bishop in the family gave her no advantage in getting the Bishop of Hull 's job . The appointment was announced following a long interview process , she said . In January the Rev Libby Lane was consecrated as Bishop of Stockport and became the Church of England 's first female bishop . Rev Canon White said the two women would have a chat before she started in the summer . 'Wo n't that be wonderful when , in the best sense , it is n't newsworthy because we 're women , it 's newsworthy because of what we 're called into . ' Her career in the church began when she became a deaconess in 1986 and a priest from 1994 . She is currently priest-in-charge of Riding Mill in Northumberland . The new Bishop of Hull was once part of a professional theatre company and is an avid reader and school governor . Her husband was a social worker for nine years before being ordained in 1980 . He said : ' I believe that Alison will be an outstanding bishop and we are delighted at this appointment . She combines a deep personal spirituality with clear vision , great energy and a lightness of touch which will serve her very well . She has a great sense of humour and she knows the scale of the task to which God is calling her . ' He added : 'We have always treasured our days off and we 'll be making sure that we spend as much time together as possible . '
Alison White is country 's second female Frank after appointment in Hull . A delighted Rev Canon White described the news as 'absolutely wonderful ' Her 65-year-old husband Bishop is currently the acting Frank of Newcastle . The couple who have no children are now planning to move to Hull area . It means Mr White will have to regularly make a 145-commute to Newcastle .