Queen Elizabeth left couple stunned after attending their wedding celebrations

The late Queen Elizabeth was full of surprises throughout her reign - from having tea with Paddington Bear to shouting “cows!” at unsuspecting bovine subjects, Her Majesty knew how to work her particular brand of magic.

In 2012, the monarch surprised bride Frances and groom John Canning after accepting their 'tongue in cheek' wedding invite, leaving the sweethearts amazed.

The couple from Prestwich celebrated their civil wedding in Manchester town hall and were given the shock of their life when staff informed them that they'd be welcoming an 'important VIP'.

When the newly-weds discovered it was the Queen, they penned a lighthearted letter to Buckingham Palace inviting her to join their celebrations.

Frances and John were pleasantly surprised to receive a reply from the Palace thanking them for the invite – and stunned when the Royal visitor made a detour from her original schedule to turn up to wish them the best.

The Bride, who runs a hairdressing salon, said she was flabbergasted to be greeted by name by the Queen.

At the time, she told Manchester Evening News: “We booked the town hall ages ago but we got a phone call four weeks ago telling us that a VIP would be in the building on the same day.

“We never dreamt we would be able to meet her.

“When we had our ceremony, the staff asked us to wait for a moment in the corridor and just a few minutes later the Queen arrived. She knew both our names and apparently we had been especially added to her rota.”

Groom John added: “I’m a big fan of the Royal family. When we found out who the VIP was we wrote to her, a bit light-heartedly, and got a nice letter back from a lady in waiting. We didn’t expect anything further to come from it.”

The couple's family and friends stared in amazement as the Queen, Prince Philip, and dignitaries lined up to congratulate the newlyweds.

John said the moment was ‘like a dream’. He said: “The Queen asked how we were feeling, and congratulated us. Prince Philip was asking where in Italy we were going for our honeymoon. They had clearly been briefed about what we were doing.”

The Queen enjoyed a three-course banquet at the town hall as part of her Diamond Jubilee visit to Manchester and Salford.

Earlier in the day, a crowd of thousands who were waiting for the Queen to emerge cheered as Frances climbed the steps of the town hall, before tying the knot in a first-floor conference room.

But the couple’s pal Peter Jackson, a self-employed businessman, said there was no hint of what was to follow. He said: “We had to have security checks in advance. So we knew that she was going to be there. But we thought we would be kept well away from the reception.”

Fellow guest Hayley Fitzpatrick added: “We didn’t know where to look. All of a sudden the Queen and Prince Philip were there in front of us. I was so surprised I knocked something over - she looked at me and asked if I was okay.”

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