Your Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Wedding- June/July 2020 (Issue 21)

REAL WEDDINGS 27  D ee and Ben met at Hartpury University in Gloucestershire. “He had come to the UK on a rugby exchange through his college in New Zealand and we were friends at first,” Dee tells us. “It wasn’t until Ben came back to the UK for the second time that our relationship began. We hung out together a few times and then, at my friend’s fancy dress party, I realised that a half-naked Samoan dressed as Wonder Woman was the man for me!” The couple became engaged during a surprise proposal in Cornwall. “I knew that Dee’s favourite place is Cornwall because she spent many years there during her childhood, and because her lucky number is 27, I decided to propose for her 27 th birthday on the 27/7/2017,” Ben tells us. “Having never visited Cornwall, I didn’t know which location I was going to choose to pop the question. After deciding on one of the region’s most beautiful beaches, Pedn Vounder, we made our way to the water’s edge only to discover that it’s an unofficial naturist beach! I changed my mind about asking her there and instead, headed back to a small but beautiful part of the coast close to where we were staying. I packed a cream tea picnic with prosecco, found a tranquil spot and asked Dee to marry me with our dog, Rodger, present.” Dee adds, “Ben isn’t the typical romantic type so just how he proposed like he did still surprises me and there’s not a single thing I would change. It was just magical and we went for one of the best meals ever afterwards in a small fishing village. The ring was incredible - Ben had remembered the design of one I had liked when a friend got married six years previously, and that was the one he proposed with. Jeweller Andrew Dee and Ben So’oialo married on 27 th June 2019 at Cripps Barn in Gloucestershire. Dee and Ben’s wedding took place at the rustic-inspired Cripps Barn with a country theme brimming with soft, pastel colours Images courtesy of Jo Hansford Photography COUNTRYFILE