Bride moved to tears as father takes secret singing lessons to surprise her
New bride Natalie Butcher was already having a magical wedding day - then her dad topped it all with a wonderful surprise that was six months in the making.
Father-of-the-bride John Butcher - from Allington, Kent in the UK - should have had enough on his plate welcoming his new son-in-law Ian Wright to the family.
But 50-year-old John decided a witty speech was not enough to celebrate his daughter's special day and planned a touching performance that would shock everyone in the room.
Now no one is saying John is going to top the charts, but the doting dad took an astounding 200 hours of singing lessons to get ready for his performance.
Only John’s son Chris knew of the plan as his father kicked off his preparations SIX MONTHS before the wedding, hiring singing coach Darren Eiffert to teach him to carry a tune.
“I really can't sing and don't pretend to. I spoke to Darren in April about the idea and started lessons in May,” Butcher told the Daily Mail.
“I've had a lesson every other week and have practised the song for an hour a day since then.”
John selected the Elvis hit Always On My Mind for his song to show Natalie that, despite the new man in her life, she will always have a place in her dad's heart.
All John’s efforts paid off as he received a standing ovation from the whole room and shocked his wife Mel in the process.
“My wife Mel was in tears as she knew nothing about the performance and my daughter told me afterwards that it was the closest she came to crying throughout the whole ceremony,” said John.
Natalie for part felt her dad’s gesture made her day unforgettable.
“We had the most amazing day which was finished off perfectly with the surprise of my dad singing after the speech.”
“I was in shock but touched by the choice of song and the amount of effort that had gone into the preparation. Everyone seemed to be as blown away as I was and it is something I will never forget,” said the bride.
Oh John the world needs more guys like you!
Hat tip: Daily Mail.
