A Bradford man has married in prison only months after falling in love through a lonely hearts magazine.

Stephen Rees, 39, first hit the headlines when he fell asleep on a plane and ended up in Japan, thousands of miles away from his planned destination of Manila.

He was jailed in February last year for 21 months and in July married Sandra, who he met through a singles magazine only four months before.

Mr Rees, who is from Great Horton, now hopes to live with Sandra and her six-year-old daughter, Sophie, at their home in Coventry when he is released from Bedford Prison next year.

"I met Sandra through a lonely hearts magazine," he said. "I got her letter on March 4 and we wrote to each other everyday.

"She started visiting me regularly soon after, and I fell in love with her quickly. It was a blessing in disguise when she felt the same way."

Mr Rees proposed eight weeks later in a letter and the pair were married at Stocken Prison in Rutland.

"The wedding went very well and the prison put on a beautiful buffet," said Mr Rees, a former lorry driver. "It really was an enjoyable day but the only problem was we weren't allowed to have any time on our own.

"Sandra has been my inspiration because the days that I have felt down, she has helped me back to my feet."

Sandra, 38, said: "Stephen and I clicked straight away and our relationship just took off.

"Everything happened very quickly and I suppose I was swept off my feet. The thought that he will hopefully be released soon keeps me going and I'm looking forward to being a proper family. We're both there for each other and we're determined to make it work."

Mr Rees is now planning to sue Egypt Air after the nightmare journey in February 1996 which he says left him penniless and unemployed.

He was heading to Manila to take up a job as a chauffeur and bodyguard but spent 17 days trying to get home to Bradford after being stranded in Japan when he nodded off on the flight. He claims it was the airline's fault for not waking him up.

Six months later he was jailed for unlawful wounding after a fight in a Bradford pub and for handling a stolen debit card. But Mr Rees says he has put the past behind him and wants to make a life with his new family.

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