Bride's veil saved by rower after it blows away

It is traditional for someone to catch the bride's bouquet at a wedding, but on Friday a group of rowers managed to catch the veil after it blew into a river.

Tina and Steve Appleford had just tied the knot and were taking group photos by the River Great Ouse in Bedford when the wind whipped the veil away.

"My husband ducked because he thought it was a bird going past his head, then we realised it was actually my veil," recalled Tina, 54, who comes from Burton Latimer, Northamptonshire.

The couple, who now live in Flitwick, Befordshire, said the incident did not dampen spirits but was very much a source of chat and laughter at the wedding.

"We were all just laughing [when it happened] and leaned over the wall, looking at it floating in the water," Tina said.

"A friend of ours realised there were some rowers coming along, so he ran down the river and tried to get their attention.

"He asked for some help to try and retrieve it."

Two members of the Star Club Rowing, from Bedford, managed to get hold of the veil, with one "trying to flick it with his oar", before handing it back to a groomsman.

"I was so busy laughing and I just went back inside. I wasn't really that bothered. It's a veil," said Tina.

One of the bridal party tried washing the veil, but to no avail.

"They said it looked as good as new, but then, it just went green.

"It just turned to like a massive algae green colour and it smelt, so I just binned it, to be honest.

"I wasn't going to keep that," Tina said.

Despite losing her veil, Tina said the episode "was really funny" and made the day all the more memorable.

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