Hartlepool couple could miss daughter's Cyprus wedding after collapse of Monarch Airlines

Barry Gill was due to fly out to Cyprus on Wednesday for the wedding of his daughter, Gemma Brown.

But the cancellation of all Monarch flights from the UK has left him and his wife Deborah wondering whether they will even be able to make it to Friday's ceremony at all.

Mr Gill's stepdaughter, Joanne Richardson, 24, said her parents could be forced to shell out as much as £800 for new flights, but they were unsure if they could afford it.

She said: "We found out early this morning that Monarch had gone bust and we've spent all the time since then trying to sort out new flights.

"We (she and her stepsister) are already out in Cyprus but Mum and Dad, with working during the week, had been planning to come Wednesday through to Saturday.

"We checked the website in the morning and it said all the flights were cancelled. It's left people in the lurch.

"I'm not sure whether they're going to be able to get out as it's a lot of money to find in the space of a day."

Mr and Mrs Gill, aged 54 and 49, from Hartlepool, had been due to fly from Leeds Bradford Airport for the wedding in Larnaka.

The whole family now face a worrying wait to see if alternative arrangements can be made.

Ms Richardson added: "It was the news nobody wanted.

"My stepsister has got all the wedding preparations to deal with, so we're trying to get it sorted.

"We just don't know whether he's going to be there to give her away."

She later said that Hays Travel had "sorted everything out" and her parents did not need to buy flights.

About 300,000 future bookings were cancelled when Monarch was placed into administration on Monday morning.

Customers have been told to keep away from airports as there will be no more flights.

They have been advised to check a dedicated website, monarch.caa.co.uk, for advice.