AN INVERKIP couple who missed out on their pearl wedding anniversary celebrations have won a dream holiday thanks to TV show This Morning.

Former Tele IT manager Richard Bruce, 53, and wife Iris, 55, appeared on the popular daytime programme recently alongside presenters Lisa Snowdon and 2016 Strictly Come Dancing winner Ore Oduba, as part of the show's own 30th anniversary celebrations.

The couple were invited to a This Morning branded bus at George Square in Glasgow and interviewed by the hosts who stunned them with a luxury break to Italy to mark both milestones.

Richard, who worked at the Telegraph for 18 years, said: "It was absolutely fantastic.

"We weren't expecting anything at all.

"A friend of ours tagged us in a Facebook invitation from This Morning looking for people who got married in 1988.

"We thought nothing more about it then my phone went one morning.

"At first I thought it was a wind up but it was someone from the show saying we'd been selected to be on the programme. "We thought it would be a wee bit of fun and a good chance to meet the presenters and maybe get on TV.

"Lisa and Ore were fantastic and made us feel really relaxed. "They're really down-to-earth people."

The surprise holiday was made even sweeter as the couple missed out on celebrating their anniversary in August after their seven-year-old rescue dog Ellie took seriously ill and was given just a 10 per cent chance of survival.

Richard, who is originally from Gourock, said: "It happened the week before and we had to rush her through to the institute in Edinburgh and she was in intensive care. "She got out the day before our wedding anniversary and there was no way we were going anywhere."

Thankfully Ellie made a full recovery and now Richard and Iris are planning to celebrate their milestone in Italy.

The couple married on August 8 in 1988 - 8/8/88 - as the date was half-way between Iris's birthday on April 4, 4/4 and Richard's on December 12 - 12/12.

Richard said: "We've never been to Italy before. "It's always been somewhere we wanted to see but we'd never got the chance to go."