THE ascension of Princess Elizabeth to the throne 70 years ago has prompted a poignant memory for Skipton man Tony Young.

Mr Young, director of the forum Travel Watch Northwest, said he was late returning to school on February 6, 1952, in order to listen to the news.

"My father had telephoned my headmaster and obtained permission for me to return late so that I could hear the one o’clock news. His assertion that “you will never hear another news like this one” became clear when the familiar strike of Big Ben was followed by the stern voice of John Snagge “This is London”. The King had died that morning. Princess Elizabeth was now Queen Elizabeth II," he recalled.

He added: "My wildest imagination could not have known that sixty three years later I would shake the hand of this new Queen."

As a Churchill Fellow he had been invited along with other Fellows through the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust to a reception Buckingham Palace in 2015 to mark the 50th anniversary of the death of Winston Churchill.

Mr Young recalled: "We each met HM Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh, and were served with copious glasses of Pol Roget Champagne, Churchill's favourite."