A BRITISH COUPLE, who were shot while on holiday in Barbados last year, will be returning on an all-expenses paid trip compliments the Barbados Tourism Authority (BTA).
And none other than cricketing legend Sir Garry Sobers made the trip to Suffolk to offer the invitation.
On March 17, 2013, Phil Prior and his wife Ann were both shot in Bridgetown. They were cruise passengers on the way back to their ship after a Commonwealth Day service. Ann, 59 at the time, was shot in the thigh, while her husband, now 73-years-old, was shot in the groin on Hincks Street just after 2 p.m.
Passers-by came to their assistance, offering treatment until an ambulance arrived to take them to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
After they returned home, the couple told the BBC they would return to the island.
“I don’t think it will put us off travelling,” Phil said.
Ann said she wanted to go back, as there was “unfinished business” and they also wrote a letter thanking some of the people who helped them.
“There are a number of people who were so kind and attentive that you feel you’d love to go back and shake them by the hand in happier circumstances,” he said at the time.
Thanks to the BTA, the couple will enjoy a two-week stay at an “extremely plush” Barbadian hotel. They will fly business class on Saturday to the island and receive tickets to see England versus West Indies at Kensington Oval.
They will be rubbing shoulders with Sir Garry and Sir Wes.
For Phil, who is an avid cricket fan, meeting Sir Garry was a bonus.
“For someone like me who grew up with cricket, it was like meeting an old friend,” he told one of their local newspapers. “He was a very affable fellow and a great chap; easy to talk to and had a fantastic knowledge of the game.”
Phil said despite the trauma of the ordeal, they had wonderful memories of the island.
“I look back thinking that I did not suffer any long lasting effect where as there are others people in far worse situations than I ever was,” he said.
“I’m going back to see these great people who helped me out in a difficult time, to have some fun at the cricket and enjoy a good glass or two of cabernet sauvignon.” (SAT)
Click this link to read the letter they wrote to the NATION last year.
