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A fairytale wedding turned into a grim story for this hapless husband-to-be after the woman he was due to marry was unveiled as an undercover reporter in the middle of the ceremony.

As the registrar asked those in attendance if anyone know of any lawful reason why the two could not get married, the 'Best Man' rose to his feet and announced the wedding was a sham.

Faced with the startling truth about his attempts to wed a woman he did not know, the grimacing groom did what many have done at previous marriage ceremonies - he bolted.

With hidden cameras in buttonholes and even the bride's bouquet of flowers, this amazing footage captures the setting up and execution of a fake marriage.

(Image: Channel 5)

The amazing scenes were captured by undercover reporters for a TV sting operation highlighting how easy it is for foreign nationals to get hitched and gain visas to stay in the UK.

Investigative reporters Paul Connelly and Harriet Morter pretended to be Best Man and blushing bride to Indian national Ali, who they met through a middle-person who advertised their 'services' on the website Gumtree.

Harriet said: “The entire process, from the moment I started researching this - to standing in a wedding dress at the registry office, took a maximum of eight weeks.

"I was shocked at how easy the process was – and shocked at what people are prepared to do to stay in the UK.”

The fixer, known only as Elizabeth, offered her services as a matchmaker, but when the reporters entered her mobile number into Google, they discovered the same woman offered advice for immigration.

The team then decided to call Elizabeth and tell her that Harriet needed money and was prepared to marry.

(Image: Channel 5)

She was invited to meet Elizabeth immediately and are soon introduced to hapless Ali - who agrees to pay £5,000 to marry his British bride.

An Indian national, Ali has just a few months left on his student visa and needs to get married in order to stay in the UK.

He told Harriet: “When I get the card you can leave. You can leave - that’s it me and you. If I want a passport...I need only one signature, that's it.”

Over the coming weeks, Harriet and Paul discover that Ali is breaking the terms of his student visa after being kicked out of college two years ago and he also tells them he is doing cash in hand work – avoiding tax.

During this time, Ali is coached by Elizabeth into creating a fake story to mislead authorities and the 'bride and groom' meet on several occasions to discuss their back story.

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The show, Sham Wedding Crashers, which is part of the Black market Britain series on Channel Five , also shows how the 'couple' met with the Registry Office and are asked a series of questions aimed at flushing out fake relationships.

But amazingly, despite blundering through the interview, the couple are allowed to marry and in dramatic footage to be broadcast tomorrow on Channel Five at 9pm get just minutes from tying the knot at a registry office in east London.

Paul said: "This was our most audacious investigation yet – to stop a sham marriage in mid-ceremony.

"The practice of setting up false marriages for passports is clearly very commonplace. Elizabeth seemed to understand that what she was doing was wrong - we hear her repeatedly warn Harriet not to tell anyone what she was doing.

“The brazen nature of her advice was one of the most shocking things of all to me. I hope that the evidence we produce in the film will stop this being a routine event in the UK.”

(Image: Channel 5)

There are estimated to be up to 10,000 fake weddings each year in Britain involving people desperate to enter and remain here – an astonishing statistic which converts to almost one wedding an hour.

Mark Rimmer, Director of the Registrars Service at Brent Council in north west London, said: “I’ve always believed that the numbers of marriages that are potentially sham are absolutely enormous.

“In London, we actually see it ourselves, we see that possibly 1 in 5 of our marriages are suspicious. The goal is always the British passport. It’s actually like gold dust.”

Evidence gathered during the Channel 5 investigation is available to the police.