Mystery bride and groom? It’s my mum and dad!
Man spots parents in old footage after Mail story
WHEN they lost a film of their wedding, newlyweds Merril and Eleanore Smullen resigned themselves to never seeing the footage again.
But nearly half a century after tying the knot in Glasgow, their family can relive the happy day after the footage was found in an attic 400 miles away.
It is thought the 8mm film, taken at Queen’s Park Synagogue in the city in June 1972, was given in error to another couple who were married on the same day.
The footage was missing until London-based scriptwriter Alexei Slater, 34, stumbled across the old reel in his attic.
Last week the Mail reported that Mr Slater had the footage digitised and took to social media in an attempt to learn the identity of the couple.
In an extraordinary stroke of luck, Mr Smullen’s sister Sheila Brill, 62, spotted the footage online. She then showed the film to her brother, now 66, and the couple’s son Malcolm, who both live in Canada.
Due to its age, the footage is tinged green, but despite the poor quality Malcolm Smullen said his aunt managed to identify the bride and groom.
The silent film shows the couple standing on the steps of the syna- gogue accompanied by their friends and family. The newlyweds pose for photos while guests mill around.
Malcolm, 43, said the footage was made all the more poignant as it features his late grandfather Cyril Pass, while his own mother Eleanore died in 2010.
He said: ‘My grandfather passed away in the late 1990s and to see him and my mum both there was really emotional. My dad saw the film and remembered things that happened and some of the people in it.
‘My daughter knows she is named after my mum and people say she looks a lot like her. It will have a lot more meaning for her as she gets older.’
Mr Smullen, who was born three years after the wedding, said: ‘I’m in a Facebook group for Glaswegian expats. I’ve a lot of family members in the group, they saw the video on the internet and told me about it.’
Mr Smullen said he and his doctor wife Mary, 36, will show their daughter Elise, five, and 18-monthold son Joel the footage when they are older.
He added: ‘I’ve not spoken to Alexei but I feel like I owe the person who found it a nice meal.’