This summer I had the joy of conducting a Vow Renewal ceremony for two lovely people. They had originally had a legal wedding in September 2021, in the break between three UK wide lockdowns as a result of the global Covid-19 Pandemic. They felt that they could not celebrate in the way that they had wanted to at the time. They were glad they did as since then they have faced a number of deaths within their family and those they have lost were able to attend the original date.
Who: Jo and Paul
Where: https://www.therochfordhotel.co.uk/
When: September 2026
1st Contact: Jo reached out to contact me as a recommendation from another wedding venue. We scheduled a video call and they described how they wanted to celebrate their five year wedding anniversary with a celebration that they never got to have before whilst celebrating those they have loved and lost and involve their young daughter too. We discussed some ideas and they were excited enough to go ahead and make the booking.
Wedding Day: I arrived at the hotel a good an hour before the ceremony was due to commence, my usual routine. I wanted to scope out the venue as I hadn’t been there for about ten years! It’s a lovely room to hold a ceremony in, light, airy and surrounded by closed in gardens so great for those with children. There is space for a hundred or so guests and they have a great sound system for your chosen celebratory tunes.
We had a Disney medley as the guests congregated, a theme that ran throughout the occasion. Paul looked very dapper in a dark suit and a floral shirt. The couple had chosen not to have a formal photographer and instead set up a photo sharing app for their guests to upload their snaps to, so ahead of the ceremony I asked the guests to snap a selfie with the people they had arrived with whilst they were still sober and presentable, these would later be uploaded to the app.
Soon, Jo arrived to ‘Kiss the Girl’ from the little Mermaid, hand in hand with daughter Alexandra, they both looked very cute with bright flower arrangements. Alex sat with nanny while we shared Paul and Jo’s love story, paid tribute to their loved ones, restated vows for the future and signed a certificate at the end.
Celebrant led: I had the joy of getting to know Paul and Jo for a little over a year and I knew what style of event they were looking for. I also knew that they weren’t having a photographer present and that they wanted to celebrate with confetti throwing after the ceremony – so this celebrant stepped in to fill the gaps!! I snapped some shots pre ceremony and at key points with in it and utilised the guests to capture those candid pre ceremony shots of themselves.
As a celebrant, I was able to weave their Disney theme throughout the content of the ceremony, which was such fun to do. I was able to meet their young daughter so she didn’t get upset when I spoke to her and asked her to join her folks for photos towards the end. I spent time with Tim, the guest who was in charge of queuing the music to explain to him the key points of activity and agreed the signs he would receive to stop and play. And post ceremony, I coordinated the guests ready for the confetti shots, re-announced the couple and took those wedding shots before I left them to celebrate with friends and family. You wouldn’t get all that from a registrar!!
Supplier Love: I can’t thank the events team at The Rochford hotel enough, they were so warm and friendly, prepared and efficient and din’t even mind when I asked if they could pick up the fox poo from the middle of the lawn so no-one stood in it post ceremony – thanks team 🙂
