The chairman of a Bolton Ukrainian Group and his daughter have been left feeling honoured and proud after they attended a Royal Carol Service last weekend.
Royal Carols: Together at Christmas will be broadcast on Christmas Eve on ITV1 at 7pm - and Bolton Branch Chair of the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain Yaroslaw Tymchyshyn and his daughter attended the carol service at Westminster Abbey after receiving an invitation from the Princess of Wales.
Yaroslaw had known for some time he was invited by the Lord Lieutenant Diane Hawkins to the event, but he didn’t expect to receive an invitation in the post – and he said the event was spectacular.
He said: “The day was really really wonderful, when we got there the security was very tight, it was like going through an airport but were given a mince pie each once we got in there and it was a little thing, but it was really nice.
“And then when we went inside the section that we were in, we were actually behind His Majesty, King Charles III.
“It was really good, and I felt honoured.
“The atmosphere was really brilliant, seeing all the choirs who were featured in videos when they received their invitations.
“I feel honoured, I took my youngest daughter with me, and her day was made when Hugh Bonneville read part of Paddington Bear.”
Yaroslaw said the event also shared a strong sense of solidarity to Ukraine.
He said: “What was really good was the fact that the Vicar of Westminster mentioned Ukraine twice, once in his prayers and once in his initial address, and it was a really nice touch.
“It made us feel part of the whole event.”
And although Yaroslaw enjoyed the carol service, he said the stark reality of the war in Ukraine came back to him when he got home as he attended the funeral service of Liam Lingard in Great Harwood.
Liam was a British paratrooper, who gave his life in Ukraine helping during the war with Russia.
Yaroslaw said: “I went from that high moment to a funeral of a man from this country who has no connections with Ukraine, who went over to defend Ukraine and paid the ultimate price and left a widow and two children, it’s really emotional.”
Yaroslaw said he will be watching the service to see if he can spot himself, as the cameras were on him and his daughter a few times.
Royal Carols: Together at Christmas will be broadcast this evening on ITV1 at 7pm.
Hosted by HRH The Princess of Wales, the programme will show the special Christmas Carol Service which took place at Westminster Abbey on December 15.
The King, the Queen Consort and Prince of Wales joined Kate and the wider royal family for her festive concert and it paid special tribute to the HM Queen Elizabeth II.
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