A SEASONED Worcester campaigner who wed his Filipino bride after a Far East romance faces Christmas alone because of red tape.

Although Jon Baddeley, from Ronkswood, has tied the knot with fiancee Merlinda Dupale, complex paperwork is halting their happiness together.

Although the 64-year-old has been married for nearly two months, the name on his wife's passport still needs to be changed.

Once that stage is complete, he has been told there is a massive waiting list for a visa.

"I've been in touch with MP Michael Foster and he told me the current visa application takes around six months to process. With Mr Foster backing my application, I hope and pray with his help I might see her earlier," said Mr Baddeley, of Ripon Road.

The couple met on the Malaysian island resort of Langkawi three years ago, when RAF veteran Mr Baddeley was visiting with fellow members of the Malaya Association.

Mrs Dupale, 48, is from Pambanga in the Philippines, but was working as a beautician in the hotel in which Mr Baddeley was staying.

She invited Mr Baddeley back to her country six months later, where he first asked her to marry him.

After meeting six or seven times together since that first moment they finally wed in October this year.

"The wedding itself was rather like a British one but we were married by the local mayor, which is a Philippino tradition," said Mr Baddeley.

"I even had to ask the British Embassy to grant their permission for me to get married. It's definitely not like getting married back home."

Now, Mr Baddeley is not 100 per cent sure the application for a visa will ever be granted.

"You can never know what the authorities will decide, but the immigration services have been really helpful," he said.

"My wife is a trained beautician and hairdresser and we've been talking about the future. She wants to start a course in Worcester to gain the qualifications needed to work here."

Merlinda, whose first husband died 10 years ago, has a 12-year-old daughter, Rowena, who Mr Baddeley also hopes may be considered for a visa.

He said each individual application costs £240 to process and he aiming for an interview day soon to support their visa requests.

Worcester MP Mr Foster has told Mr Baddeley he would write a letter of support for Merlinda's application to the immigration officer in Manila.