Andy Burnham sent a video message to a bride on her wedding day after she asked him not to attend, fearing his security detail would ruin her wedding photos outside the venue.
Sarah 'Saz' Burwin had pleaded with the Prime Minister on TikTok in July not to work from the building in Manchester that hosts the government's northern headquarters, No 10 North, and the city's register office, on the day of her wedding.
In her original video, which has reached nearly 1.5 million views, Burwin said she was worried that the police presence and security measures required for Burnham would spoil the photographs she hoped to take outside the registry office. She told him he was welcome to attend but asked him to give his security detail "an hour off", and later joked he could DJ the afterparty.
Burnham did not turn up, but sent a video message to Burwin and her new husband Fred. In it, he said: "Thank you so much for the invite. But sadly, I'm honouring your initial request for me to stay out of the way, as I'm filming this as I'm about to leave No 10 North for the day."
He added: "I couldn't let the day go by without sending you both a message. I hope you have the best day celebrating, and thank you for being such a good sport about No 10 North suddenly being a big part of your big day. The DJ set will have to wait for another time, but I hope you play some good tunes on my behalf, big Manchester bangers."
In response, Burwin could be seen saying: "Oh my God. What a lad. I love him!"
Burnham opened No 10 North within the first few days of becoming prime minister, honouring a pledge he had made before succeeding Keir Starmer. The office falls under his new Office of the Prime Minister, which has taken in parts of the Cabinet Office, the Treasury and the housing ministry, and will in part focus on economic growth policy across the country.