Surprise royal wedding invitation worth a call to Mum

Anita Loxton and husband Dan, who is in the same squadron as Prince William, pictured on their own wedding day. Photo / supplied

Anita Loxton was so excited when she received her invitation to the royal wedding, she phoned her mum in New Zealand in the middle of the night and read it out to her.

The Takapuna-born nurse, 30, will attend Friday's ceremony with her husband, Flight Lieutenant Dan Loxton, 36, a pilot in Prince William's Royal Air Force 22 Squadron.

The entire C Flight unit, based in Anglesey in North Wales, and their partners have been invited to watch his and Kate Middleton's nuptials.

The Prince is a search and rescue helicopter pilot with the squadron.

The Loxton's invitation arrived at their home in Rhosneigr, a small coastal town in Wales, on February 17.

"We were kind of hoping we would be invited but it was still very exciting when it came," said Mrs Loxton, a former Westlake Girls High School student.

"The first thing I did was call my mum in New Zealand, it was about two in the morning or something ridiculous."

Mrs Loxton, a nurse at the Ysbyty Gwynedd Hospital, says she has gone for the "classic look".

Her above-the-knee, navy lace dress will be complemented by a navy blazer, a big silver hat, made by a friend, and flesh-coloured, sling-back shoes.

Flight Lieutenant Loxton will wear his "number one" RAF uniform.

His unit has not been invited to the receptions at Buckingham Palace but will have its own celebration dinner.

Mrs Loxton said her husband hadn't managed to coax any gossip out of the Prince about pre-wedding jitters.

"He said he's just a great colleague who really enjoys the work. They occasionally all go for beers together. He's just an ordinary guy who happens to be the future king of England."