See how other couples celebrated their big day with wedding stories and ideas from County Wedding Magazines' Real Weddings features.
They say everything happens for a reason and it seems the stars aligned for Jo and Nick. Nick moved back to the village that he grew up in to take over the running of the local village pub with his cousin Adam - and on that opening night is when Nick clapped eyes on Jo! They had met their match. Jo tells us, "Nick proposed to me in Budapest at the Szechenyi Thermal Baths on the 5th December 2019." A little later than expected due to lockdown, on 6th October 2023, the day finally came and Jo and Nick tied the knot at Houchins.
DDanny and Paige met the modern way, via Tinder. Love blossomed, as Paige tells us. "Our proposal was just perfect. In 2021, shortly after the birth of our son, Freddie, my now husband Danny booked us a holiday to the Greek island of Santorini. We've always had a boat day on any holiday we've done together, so it was only right that on this trip, Danny booked a boat for the afternoon. However, this wasn't any tourist boat this time. I arrived at the port, and a luxury private yacht was waiting for me with the captain handing us a glass of champagne each. We spent the afternoon jumping into the ocean, sipping wine and nibbling on Greek snacks. At sunset, we were taken to the middle of the ocean, where Danny got down on one knee and presented me with a stunning pear-shaped diamond ring."
Dulcie and Bobby first met at college and ended up attending the same university. Their friendship grew stronger over time, retaining a comforting link to home. "We always had so much in common, sharing the love of the same books (Harry Potter, obviously), TV shows and movies", says Dulcie. She continues, "We lived together for our second and third years, where our friendship grew into something more during this time. We ignored and denied it for a while but eventually took the risk and never looked back. Fast forward time, we have shared 12 years of love, 16 years of friendship and one year of marriage!"
Lauren and Rob met at a football match 13 years ago. "Rob's a semi-professional football player and has been a goalkeeper most of his life. I guess you could say Rob was tall, dark (he had hair at the time) and handsome!" shares Lauren.
Lauren and Jon met on a train in 2013. "I couldn't read the sign, so I decided to ask Jon for help," says Lauren. "We hit it off and spoke for a few months before things fizzled out. By chance, we met again three years later at a station. We went for drinks, and the rest is history."
Rebecca and Bradley met in March 2020 and had an instant connection. "After five dates, lockdown hit," says Rebecca. "We spent three months talking via FaceTime, and at that point, we knew if we could get through lockdown, we could get through anything. Straight after the restrictions eased, we went house hunting and nine months later, we finally managed to move in together
Me'sha and Darren are musicians who met when she was performing her original music at Shepherds Bush Cricket Club. "He's a drummer, educator, and two-time all-natural bodybuilding champion; I'm a singer, actor, and vocal coach," says Me'sha. "I had a habit of firing drummers from my band, so when I first set eyes on Darren, I thought, 'Oh no! He's really handsome!' Annoyingly, he'd been really attentive when learning my music, brought his own drumkit to the gig, knew all the lyrics to my songs, and was really good with children. We were also both members of the faculty at a specialist music school in London, so not long after that, we started dating, and I didn't have to fire him from my band!"
Becky and Mikey met at Winchester University 11 years ago and bonded over a shared love of football, "We both had found great humour and laughter in conversations and were both tall!" adds Becky. "It was great to have a man who was still taller than me even when I wore heels."
Precious met Sean when they were younger as he is the best friend of her brother; fast-forward 19 years and they have now tied the knot! After Sean proposed in a treehouse in the Cotswolds the day before Precious's birthday, the big date was set for 27th August 2024, with the bride's family home in Virginia Water setting the scene.
Evie and Alex met through mutual friends. "We went for a meal in Windermere for our first date," says Evie. "For our second date, we went on a boat trip across Lake Windermere to an aquarium. It snowed heavily the whole time we were there, and it was beautiful."
Danielle and Iffan met at work. "It was my first day in critical care; I asked him for a handover and he was rude to me," says Danielle. "He was so rude, I decided not to speak to him again, but we kept running into each other at work and eventually started talking. We met again at a work's do, sparks started to fly, and the rest is history!"
Heather and Joe met while studying at university. "Although we were on different courses, we lived together in the same accommodation during our first year," says Heather. "We were friends for a year and got together the following summer. I always found Joe attractive, particularly because of his bright blue eyes. He was always the funny one in the group, and we would spend a lot of time together as friends."
Nicholas and Michael met on Tinder during one of the national Covid lockdowns. They chatted online for a while until it was safe to meet up. But even then social distancing restrictions were still in place, so they were forced to resort to a MacDonald's car park – "Very classy," laughs Nicholas.
Natalie and Josh met at a party 13 years ago, and Josh proposed in 2016 just before Christmas. He'd intended to pop the question in Paris on New Year's Eve, but collected the ring early and was so excited, he couldn't keep it a secret any longer! He booked a restaurant in Brighton instead and happily Natalie said, "Yes."
Grace and Mark met through work and decided to give coupledom a shot at the Christmas party back in 2016. Fast forwarding four years we find the couple on top of Cheddar Gorge near Glastonbury, where Mark popped the question. The original plan was to propose a few months earlier, while they on holiday in South Africa, but unfortunately Covid put a stop to that. But the new version on home soil was definitely an incredible surprise for Grace who of course said, "Yes"!
Trang and Kurtis met at university. "I spoke to Trang at the annual ball," Kurtis tells us. "We got on well and over the next few weeks, I discovered the fun and silly side of her personality." Trang adds, "I thought Kurtis was funny when I first met him and as I got to know him more, the small things attracted me to him including his gentle, calm demeanour and love of animals."
Sammy and Graeme met while at university when they both went on a skiing trip to France. "We bonded over being beginners on the slopes and throwing some interesting shapes on the dancefloor," they tell us. "I was immediately attracted to Sammy and, at the advice of my friends, I thought I was playing it cool by waiting an entire day to ask her out!" Graeme says. "For our first date, keen to impress, I planned a tour around some of the best cocktails bars – but I was so nervous that I arranged the meeting time for two hours before the music started in the first bar and then I missed her numerous hints for food while asking the waitress for more free popcorn! Still, it can't have gone too badly, because by spring we'd become inseparable."
Georgia and Nathan met at work. "A friend of ours at the Christmas party told me that Nathan had a little soft spot for me and the rest was history from that evening," Georgia tells us. "Nathan asked me to marry him four years later in Bath which was the perfect place because it's where he had taken me for our first ever weekend away.
These lovebirds met on Hinge the day before the first lockdown, so they spent three months video dating and getting to know each other. They watched TV simultaneously, played games over Zoom and cooked the same meals. Fast forward time, Tom proposed on a trip to Marseille! Nicola says, "It was a surprise; I suspected it was coming at some point, but not during that trip. He got down on one knee in a little cheese and wine bar – it was perfect!"
These love birds had known of each other through the grapevine, but swiping right on Tinder brought them together! Jason proposed in Barcelona, Elle's favourite city, in a secluded area amongst the trees overlooking the city during a picnic. It was on the first day of their holiday, so they enjoyed the rest of the week celebrating. It was a complete surprise and Jason did well to get through airport security smoothly – his bag usually sets alarms off!
These lovebirds first met around 10 years ago but lost contact over time. It wasn't until Dom moved back from London in 2018 that he messaged Dan to meet for a drink – it all restarted from there! "Sense of humour is what initially attracted us to one another and as our relationship grew, it was obvious that we had so many similarities", says Dom. He popped the question a few years later during a beach walk with their dog. He says, "There was little romance to it; I asked Dan if he fancied having a wedding and when he said 'yes', I replied, 'Oh that's good because I have a ring'. It was a surprise to Dan but nobody else. I roped in one of his best friends and her husband to find out his ring size, keeping quiet is not one of my strengths!"
David came back from university and met Sophie, who was working behind the bar in a local pub. A few weeks later, the pair bumped into each other and exchanged numbers – the rest is history! Fast forward time, David popped the question and the couple tied the knot on August 6th 2022. They planned the perfect day full of fun
Eleanor and Reece met on a night out just before the lockdown in 2020 and created a strong bond that grew over the next few years. Reece was attracted to Eleanor's independence and thought she was the most gorgeous girl. It was love at first sight for them both – how romantic!
These lovebirds worked at the same company but didn't start chatting until Howard moved into the same block of flats as Steph. After a few dates, the pair knew they had found their soul mate and the rest is history! Steph comments, "We managed to spend evenings chatting away, and there was never a lull in conversation. From the beginning, we just got on really well!"
Jade and Matt met at Oxford Brookes University in 2013. "I worked with Matt's friend who introduced us and our relationship blossomed from there," Jade tells us. "Matt proposed to me during a trip to the Cotswolds where we stayed in a place called Piglet Cottage. With the help of our sausage dog, Malcolm, who was dressed in a bow tie printed with the words 'she said yes', Matt got down on one knee in front of the fire and asked me to marry him. It was a wonderful, romantic surprise! For the past five years, I had always packed my best clothes and make-up whenever we went away, should a proposal happen, but it never did. The one time I packed my comfortable unflattering clothes, it happened!"
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