It was the 23rd December, after a tough year (I mean, I explained my thoughts on this in my last post - we’ve had it easy really compared to most, it was mostly just a year of ‘continued disruption’ at this end) we were determined to get married. I proposed to my Aggie last May, in the tiny garden of our old house as our beloved cat, Coco, was having an asthma attack in the corner. The wedding was originally scheduled for 1st August with a couple of hundred people attending, and then early December with 30, and then December 28th with the legally-allowed 15.
On the 23rd, we were at the church for our wedding rehearsal, quite tense as the epic size of the OLEM church in Cambridge is quite intimidating. Mid-rehearsal, my phone beeped, a news update. “Put your phone away for just one minute” lovingly snapped Aggie, but I had a cheeky glance anyway…Cambridge, all of it (not just Peterborough this time) were going into tier 4 from Boxing Day. Two days before the wedding.
We dashed to the parish office and begged for a solution. “Well,” said the big man in charge (the lovely Cannon Harkness), “you could do 11am tomorrow morning?”
A Christmas Eve wedding! Best man had to drive overnight from Bristol, dog sitter hastily rearranged for my mum’s attention-seeking staffie, photographer re-booked, flowers bought in a hurry, reception venue had to have an urgent meeting. So much stress, so much panic…so perfect.
The press got involved - a friend of mine tipped them off, I was also on BBC Radio chatting about it on the morning of the big day as I struggled with my cufflinks. Four days later, it feels like a bit of a blur, but the press described it a lot better than I ever could have done:
https://www.elystandard.co.uk/news/couple-marry-before-tier-four-6868874?fbclid=IwAR0PCF7L34-SR5WCfJssM682k64lDIWoPm46Xg0uBaqxb9vDNzbjIR3ka3Y
I know a lot of people say, “I’m the luckiest person alive!” but I’m sorry, you’re not. I am.
Anyway, enough of the soppiness, back to professional posts after this.