Former headteacher’s joy as she comes forward as mystery bride in black and white wedding snaps found inside an old eBay camera

THE MYSTERY bride in a set of 1970s wedding photos which had gone undeveloped until a man recently purchased an old camera on eBay has come forward.

Photographer Alex Galmeanu was amazed to discover an old roll of film inside the secondhand camera which contained wedding pictures.

The 38-year-old then became determined to track down those in the pictures so he could learn more.

And now, after setting out to track down the family involved by posting the images on his blog, he's done just that.

After the venue was identified as Burleigh Court Hotel in Stroud, Gloucestershire, Alastair Bremner then came forward and revealed the images were of his sister Kathleen marrying her sweetheart Pete Maloney.

Their wedding took place on April 6, 1974.

The bride in the photos, Kathy Bremner, said looking back at pictures from the special day has brought memories flooding back.

Though she had professional shots stored in the attic, she rarely dug them out.

Former headteacher Kathy, now in her 60s, said her niece, Sheena Bremner-Egan, told her about the story after seeing Alex's appeal on Facebook became widely shared.

On Thursday evening, her brother Alastair called her to share the news.

Kathy, of Cheltenham, said: "When my brother told me about the film I was shocked and stunned.

"I did wonder if it was a wind up - I couldn't believe it.

"Seeing the photos is very nostalgic. It's nice but it is quite sad because a lot of the people in them aren't still alive.

"Other people in the family weren't alive at the time so they think it's pretty remarkable.

"Looking at the photos has bought back so many memories.

"The fact that the film stayed so intact is fascinating.

"We are going to thank Alex for what he has done - for his fortitude in sticking with it."

Kathy and Pete met while she was studying to become a teacher at the University of Birmingham and working at the student union bar.

He was working as a sound engineer for Chrysalis Records.

She said: "He was quite fascinating. He was in the music business and I would go to London to visit him.

"He was actually a friend who gave me lifts and it just graduated from there - we got together and it developed."

A 24-year-old Kathy tied the knot to Pete, 25, after six years together, in front of 100 family and friends.

She said: "I know we had a couple of bottles of Dom Perignon and I remember going and taking all the confetti off the cars.

"We wanted it to be about all the guests and sharing the experience, making sure they had a good time.

"It was a very successful day for everybody."

The pair enjoyed a honeymoon in Tunisia, and then rented a property together in Cheltenham, before moving to Frampton-on-Severn.

However their love did not have a happy ending.

Kathy and Pete separated after he began working in the oil industry in Saudi Arabia.

When he returned from his trip he moved to Australia.

She said: "We wanted different lifestyles and we had different interests, but they are fond memories.

"I learned a lot through him."

He is now living in Cairnes, Australia, and went on to remarry and have two children.

Kathy, who doesn't have any children and never remarried, remembers the time fondly.

And Alex could not be happier that his mystery is solved.

He said: "It is amazing. It is quite surreal. It is a story that I will probably tell in many years to come.

"Imagine - a 40-year-old film. Anything could happen in that time - someone playing around with the film, letting the camera have too much sun or anything.

"I bought the camera on eBay not more than 10 days ago for about £40.

"As far as I know, maybe the camera was lost or they forgot about it. How is it possible for that to happen?

"After that, the camera was floating around from flea market to flea market. No one ever used it - I don't know how it is possible."

"This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for me - the lucky thing was that I was able to develop the film," he added.

"This is a human thing more than a professional thing."

Despite tracking down the family, Alex is yet to discover who was behind the lens.

He added: ";There is one mystery remaining for me personally.

"I really want to know who actually did the pictures because we never actually discovered that.

"The family don't recollected who was taking them."

Alastair, the bride's brother, identified the other people in the pictures including his sister Morag, Pete Maloney's parents, and an aunt and uncle, Grace and Bob Thomas.

He told the BBC: "My sister lives in Cheltenham at the moment.

"She married Pete but their wedding didn't last that long unfortunately.

"Pete now lives in Australia."

Christine Read, general manager of the Burleigh Court Hotel, where the pictures were taken, has worked there for 30 years.

She said: "When I saw one of the photos I straight away knew that these were our steps.

"When I saw the other photos it just cemented it.

"We are so pleased. It is a lovely end to the story."

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