A LONG serving town councillor and blind Army veteran will meet the Queen when he attends a royal garden party at Buckingham Palace.

Councillor Brian Gibson, of Ferryhill Town Council, County Durham, is a member of the Blind Veterans UK group.

The former lance corporal joined the military aged 19 and spent six years in the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME), four of them based in Germany.

Cllr Gibson, 64, began to have problems with his eyesight shortly after leaving the military.

A former engineering inspector, he is now blind in one eye and partially sighted in his other.

Cllr Gibson, who joined the town council in 2007, is to attend the garden party in London with his wife Pauline on Thursday, June 4.

He said: “I’m looking forward to the garden party. I never expected to be invited to it and it was a pleasant surprise to be asked.

“I enjoyed my time in the Army and we received the invitation through the Blind Veterans group.”

This year marks the centenary of Blind Veterans UK and the garden party is one of the events being held to commemorate the anniversary.

David Bassom, of Blind Veterans UK, said: “We are very proud of our 100 years of service.

“The Buckingham Palace garden party is a wonderful way for the blind and vision-impaired veterans we support to celebrate this.”