Family of Royal Navy sailor sneak on board HMS Prince of Wales to celebrate his 18th birthday

Able Seaman Rhys Zanetti was serving on aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales when his loved ones staged a surprise birthday bash from him yesterday.

Prince of Wales is alongside in Liverpool as part of a week-long visit to her affiliated city – and Rhys' family spotted an opportunity to make his birthday unforgettable.

As thousands of members of the public packed the ship's hangar for a glimpse inside the new carrier this weekend, Rhys' mum, dad, stepdad and grandfather secretly joined them.

Rhys, a seaman specialist, was distracted showing members of the public seamanship skills while his family crept across the hangar carrying balloons and a birthday cake.

And when he finally spotted them, the hangar erupted into song as everyone wished him a happy birthday.

Rhys, from Yorkshire but who is based in Portsmouth, said: ‘It was a complete shock, I was not expecting it at all. I can't believe they managed to get the whole hangar singing happy birthday.

‘I've really enjoyed the ship's visit to Liverpool so far and it was great to see my family here.’

Rhys' mum Natalie Holdsworth said: ‘The whole time we were waiting to get on board I was just thinking “he's going to kill me”.

‘It was so nice that everyone helped us make this happen to surprise him. I haven't seen him in about a month and seeing him here on his ship is such a proud moment for us as his family.’

HMS Prince of Wales arrived in Liverpool on Friday for a historic week-long visit to her affiliated city.

The second of the UK’s giant new aircraft carriers sailed along the River Mersey as spectators lined both sides of the waterfront.

Almost 13,000 tickets were sold to visitors to tour the ship. It was the first time either of two Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers had been open to the public.