Picture the scene; its a sunny day by the beach, ou're out on the body board and suddenly you notice you have drifted out to sea. The waves gather force, then the string holding your board to you snaps.

Then out of the mist, a whirring of helicopter blades, and, deus ex machina, a man descends fromt he chopper to winch you aboard.

A few mintues later, spluttering seawater from your ordeal, you are inside the helicopter. The pilot turns round to give you a grin.

The pilot is Prince William.

That's what happened to teenager Sharon West, who has now described her shock at being hauled form the perilous seas by the heir to the throne.

 

Sharon, 16, told Hello! magazine: "The sea was really choppy, the string snapped on my bodyboard so I had nothing to keep me afloat; I screamed to Tamara to keep hold of hers."

She added: "If it wasn't for the fast response of two surfers who alerted the RAF, and also the quick response from the crew of the Sea King helicopter, including Prince William, I wouldn’t be here today."

The teenager, who was taken to hospital after the incident, recalled: "I remember saying to the winch men that I thought my life was over. I would like to say a big thank you to all of them."