Groom forgot to book wedding venue - then staged bomb scare on the big day so his bride wouldn't find out

Husband-to-be warned St George's Hall, Liverpool, of the bomb

Did not fill in marriage paperwork and had not officially booked venue

He admitted that he 'hadn't got the heart' to tell his fiancee his mistake



She turned up to find hall evacuated and swarming with police

He's now facing jail sentence after admitting to hoax call



Hoax: Neil McArdle sparked a bomb scare to prevent his fiancee from finding out he had forgotten to book the venue

As far as his unsuspecting bride was concerned, everything was in place for their big day.



But when Neil McArdle realised he had bungled the booking of his wedding, he couldn’t face breaking the news to his fiancée, Amy Williams.



Instead, the panic-stricken groom took desperate measures and phoned the venue to warn there was a bomb about to go off...in the hope the distraction would prevent her from ever finding out about his mistake.



McArdle, who is unemployed, stood by as Miss Williams, 29, turned up at historic St George’s Hall, Liverpool, in her wedding dress, only to find it had been evacuated and was swarming with police.



Yesterday it emerged the hoax is likely to land him in jail after he pleaded guilty to making the hoax call.



It is understood McArdle and Miss Williams are still together but, six months on from the incident, have still not tied the knot.



McArdle said: ‘It was just a ridiculous thing I did. It might be funny to other people, but not to me. It’s wrecking my family’s life.



‘I’m still together with Amy, but she’s got high blood pressure and wants nothing to do with it.’



McArdle had planned to marry Miss Williams at Liverpool Register Office, which is situated within the listed St George’s Hall, on April 24.



The date was pencilled in and the pair were given ‘right to marry’ paperwork to complete in order to legalise proceedings.



But by the time the big day arrived, hapless McArdle realised he had not filled in the forms and knew the venue was not officially booked.



Instead of telling the truth, he went to a phone box near his home on the morning of the wedding and rang the venue.



He told the receptionist: ‘There’s a bomb in St George’s Hall and it will go off in 45 minutes’, before putting the phone down.



Dozens of people inside were evacuated and bomb disposal units raced to the scene.



A source said: ‘He realised he hadn’t filled this form in. But he hadn’t got the heart to tell his missus and her family.’

