American transgender woman set to move to UK and marry British bride

Home Top

Terror in the air as passengers 'start to pass-out' on airliner: Pilot plunges jet into 7,000ft-a-minute dive and lands - but cause remains a mystery because investigators say cabin pressure did NOT fail
'My baby with Ariel Castro was an angel from my dead mom and having a daughter made me care for my captor': Cleveland 'house of horrors' survivors speak for the first time
Google launches its mobile network: Project Fi to bring cheaper calls and texts to the US
Scientists genetically modify a human embryo for the first time: Controversial technique could lead to designer babies
Coffee isn't made from beans and Everest ISN'T the world's tallest mountain: Experts unveil life's top 50 misconceptions that have become modern day 'facts'
TWO women in the White House race? Carly Fiorina reportedly set for May 4 campaign announcement
Five nursing students killed in fiery crash on their last day of school when tractor trailer plowed into line of stopped traffic
Girl, 14, who was seized by police in Mexico and returned to her 'mother' in Houston is sent BACK again - because she was the wrong girl
Pictured: British rogue trader accused of causing $860bn Wall Street crash from the modest home he shares with his parents
Reagan shooter John Hinckley Jr. has a girlfriend he met at mental health support group
Race was NOT the reason an entire in Missouri town's police force quit after after black woman mayor was elected, ex-police chief claims
The bookkeeper of death who wanted the world to know true horror of Auschwitz even if it means he's jailed for war crimes at 93...
NFL players win $1bn concussion lawsuit that could see former stars win $190,000 each in damages
Dallas NFL star Greg Hardy suspended by NFL for 10 games for allegedly strangling and threatening to kill his ex-girlfriend
Odin Lloyd's mother to sue Aaron Hernandez over the murder of he son
Ben Affleck finally admits he is descended from slave-owner on his mother's side after having revelation censored from roots program
Sobbing Utah teacher, 35, admits having sex with three of her male students - in trysts that were so well known that classmates joked: 'Who is Ms Altice sleeping with now?'
Second Oregon jail worker accused of sex with an inmate may use insanity defense as new court filings reveal their blanket-covered trysts and the love letters she penned for him
Teacher, 42, charged with sexual assault 'after sleeping with three of her students'
Changing attitudes and more women cops are behind the soaring numbers of female teachers being prosecuted for sexual assault
Christian school teacher, 27, caught two years after having sexual relationship with student, 15, apologizes for 'taking his innocence'
Outrage as Texas chef is fined $2,000 for feeding the homeless 'because she was serving meals out of the wrong kind of truck'
American transgender woman set to move to UK and marry bride she has never met to fulfil 'lifelong dream' of becoming British
Transgender teen wins legal battle to wear make-up in her driving license photo

American transgender woman Hayley Carney has never met British fiancee
She will marry in hope of fulfilling 'lifelong dream' of becoming UK citizen
Said she believes Britons are more 'openly accepting of people like her'

Published: 15:44 EST, 22 April 2015 | Updated: 17:13 EST, 22 April 2015

View
comments

Bride to be: American Hayley Carney hopes to fulfil a 'lifelong dream' of becoming a British citizen

An American transgender woman is preparing to move to the UK to marry a bride she has never met in order to fulfil a 'lifelong dream' of becoming a British citizen.

Hayley Carney will undergo surgery to complete her gender transition before moving to live with her fiancee, identified only as Anne, in Plymouth, Devon, later this year.

She will then have six months to apply for a marriage visa, which, if successful, will set her on the path to citizenship.

Ms Carney, formerly known as Robert, said she has been dreaming of a life in Britain since reading books about it as a child.

She added that she feels the nation is more accepting of 'people like her'.

But it was only after meeting Anne in an online support group that she decided to make a move to the country she 'has always wanted to call home'.

She said: '[Anne] told me months ago that my life would be more comfortable in England, not only because my heart has always been there, but overall Britain is more openly accepting of people like me.

'I cannot wait to be there with her and in a country I have always wanted to call home.

'In my heart, that's always been my home since I could read. I have dreamed of being a British citizen my whole life.

'I have found throughout life that British people are kind and polite. I have several friends I have made over the years and they really are some of the best friends anyone could ask for.

'I have spoken with many people about my upcoming move and they all say that my life would be less complicated and acceptance is found more easily there.

'I cannot speak for more people than I know, but in comparing friends from here in the US to my friends in the UK, my British friends are the most wonderful, caring, loving and accepting people I know.'

Moving to Britain: Ms Carney, pictured, will undergo surgery to complete her gender transition before moving to live with her fiancee, identified only as Anne, in Plymouth, Devon, later this year

Ms Carney intends to move to the UK and search for a job before applying for a visa.

She said: 'Immigration is a huge concern of mine. What I need to do is get there, settle in, find employment, then follow all proper channels to eventually earn myself a British citizenship.

'Once acclimatised, I will proudly hold my head high and call myself British, but not until I have earned that right.

'When I come home to England, I want it to be for the remainder of my life.

'There are so many reasons people migrate; personally I just want a better life. I am prepared for what may come my way on the road to becoming a permanent British citizen.'