Big-hearted Mick’s visit to the Palace

A BIG-HEARTED restaurateur who has backed Nuneaton and Bedworth mayor’s appeals for almost four decades has been awarded for his efforts - an invite to Buckingham Palace.

Mick Emanuele, who runs La Tavola Calda in Nuneaton, could not believe his eyes when he received a royal letter inviting him to a garden party at the palace in London.

He received the invitation back in January: “It was a complete surprise. When I looked at the special envelope, I thought ‘what’s going on here’ but then I read it and I couldn’t believe it.

“It said in the letter that they would be in touch six weeks before the event with three dates to choose from, so I chose Tuesday, May 15.”

The letter read: “In recognition of your many years of work to the community, your name has been submitted to the Lord Lieutenant of Warwickshire for inclusion in his list of recommendations to the Lord Chamberlain to receive an invitation to one of Her Majesty’s garden parties being held at Buckingham Palace.”

The 67-year-old, who has lived in Nuneaton for 53 years, has held events to raise funds for civic appeals for the past 39 mayors of Nuneaton and Bedworth . He travelled down to London with his proud wife Valerie and joined a huge queue of thousands of fellow Garden Party goers, stood in the blazing sunshine for almost an hour.

But it was worth the wait when the couple finally got into the stunning gardens: “It was brilliant, the gardens were beautiful and we managed to see the Queen in the distance,” he said.

“It was a great day, one of the best ever, not many people get to say they’ve been to a garden party at Buckingham Palace.”