The government’s lockdown rules put a ban on social gatherings, which means brides and grooms who have been planning their weddings for the last few months or years have had to postpone their plans.
However, one couple decided they could not wait to become man and wife and quickly changed their plans so they could tie the knot the day before lockdown came into effect on March 23rd.
Sarah Joy and Luke Gillard had been arranging for their dream nuptials to take place at St Mary’s Church in Weaverham, Cheshire, followed by a reception at Hartford Golf Club on Easter Saturday, April 11th.
However, after it was clear social gatherings were going to be restricted – and then banned altogether – they decided they would get hitched with only the bride’s parents as witnesses on March 22nd at 18:00 instead.
This was less than a day before Prime Minister Boris Johnson declared a ban on all social gatherings indefinitely.
The 25-year-old bride told the Daily Mail: “As it became clear the wedding would have to be cancelled, above everything, we knew we still wanted to get married this year no matter what.”
She added: “We had [waited] so long to get to this point and we didn’t want anything else to stop us from tying the knot, so we started to look at whether there could be another way.”
After tying the knot in church, they held a romantic ceremony on their original wedding date in Luke’s parent’s garden in Wavertree, Liverpool, where they have been living since getting married.
Sarah Joy wore her long-sleeved lace wedding dress, the couple said speeches to one another, they drove around in a convertible car to wave to friends and family who live nearby, and contacted their guests on video conference call so they could raise a toast to the happy couple.
To make light of the situation, their homemade wedding cake featured a antibacterial hand sanitiser bride and groom.
Many couples have had to postpone their nuptials, including Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, who were due to tie the knot on May 29th.
However, this could give them more time to find the best suppliers to make their special day even more perfect, from wedding photographers in Sussex to exceptional caterers.