The 24th of April 2020
What it's like to have a wedding cancelled during a global pandemic
The 24th of April, for most, was just like any of the 38 days that proceeded it. A day dedicated to staying indoors, protecting the NHS and saving lives. Perhaps you woke up, put on another pair of running leggings, brushed your teeth then had your daily dose of Weetabix. The
Ann and William should have been married on April 24th
afternoon was possibly quite unproductive as you sat at the dining table, did some work had a cup of tea and a digestive before dinner and spending the evening watching The Chase and The Great British Menu. You then went to bed waking up on the 25th and did the exact same thing all over again. Not a particularly memorable day for most, but for one couple, the 24th of April was not supposed to be like any other day.
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'...from then on we became friends
which blossomed into something else...'
Ann Brown met William Anderson over 12 years ago when he interviewed her for a job, ‘he can’t recall being on the interview panel and certainly didn’t remember me at all. Obviously, I didn’t make that good a first impression.’ The two would work together for the next 6 years without much more than a glance in each other’s direction. When the pair began working in closer quarters with each other, discerning glances turned into hellos and goodbyes, but only occasionally. ‘Gradually over time he did speak to both of us (colleague) about other things apart from work. Eventually we even persuaded him to join us in a quiz. From then on, we became friends which blossomed into something else.’
No one was more surprised than Ann when, over a decade after she met the man who had once struggled to say hi, William asked her to marry him. ‘Willie had said he would never marry again, so I never thought that it would happen. No matter how many people mentioned it to him he always stressed it would never happen. Then one night, while he was ill,
Wedding
invitations featuring daffodils
we were discussing a wedding we were going to and he said “oh that won’t happen at our wedding” I remember saying no it wouldn’t as he would never get married and he then said “why don’t we?” I had to wait until he was well to double check with him that he actually meant it.’ So began the planning. Cake tested, flowers picked, guest list written and the 24th of April all set and ready to go.
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'...they would not change dates unless the government stated gatherings over 100 people could not go ahead.
we started to worry as we had seen how quickly things had escalated in other countries.’ As
one of the hardest hit industries during the UK pandemic lockdown, the wedding industry is predicting that 64% of weddings this year will either be postponed or cancelled. With the industry expecting to lose
The couple had to postpone their wedding due to COVID19
‘As soon as the government started to issue instructions about self-isolating if you had symptoms
upwards of £87 billion. ‘Even when we had started working from home the hotel was still going ahead with all weddings and said they would not change dates unless the government stated gatherings over 100 people could not go ahead. A week before all hotels were closed, they did contact us to say we could change the date as they were sure weddings would not happen. They offered us a few options, but it had to be within a few months of the old date.’
However, the couple had to nervously wait as new dates were offered but once they were, as level headed as ever, they got to work changing all of their plans, ‘We spent a Saturday morning phoning the celebrant, photographer, disco, witnesses, parents to check the best date, We then picked the new date, confirmed with the hotel
Enjoying afternoon on their should-have-been big day
and then sent messages via social media, texts, calls to all the guests. The hotel transferred over all the room bookings for guests to the new date. The only room that is no longer available is the suite that we had booked for 2 nights but we will cope.’ With the new date set for September the 11th this year, the couple have to wait with crossed fingers again as they hope restrictions are eased in six months’ time. ‘We are now worried that it might not happen again in September. We have some guests who are currently in the shielding group and we cannot imagine getting married without them being there – one of them is my mum. We are also worried that guests may choose not to attend as they are scared. We selected the guests because we wanted them to share our special day so it would seem wrong to go ahead without everyone we want attending.’
Unfortunately, moving their day from spring to autumn also means that some of their seasonal plans may have to be re thought ‘Daffodils were to be part of my theme hence the spring wedding so we may have to change that or go with artificial flowers.’ Despite this difficult time, the couple remain positive frequently holding Facebook live quizzes for their wedding guests to get to know one another and looking after a dementia care dog whilst his owners cannot. As the 24th came around, the couple asked their Facebook friends to send them a ‘virtual cheers’ at 2pm and 7pm to toast to the day. In true lockdown fashion, their would-have-been wedding day was celebrated from the comfort of their garden. We got dressed up and a friend made us afternoon tea and supplied vintage china. We set out a table in the garden. At 2pm we did a fake bridal march, exchanged rings, just for the day, opened a bottle of fizz and toasted what should have been our day…All in all it was a great day with lots of well wishes
‘Daffodils were to be part of my theme hence the spring wedding so we may have to change that or go with artificial flowers.’
Daffodils we supposed to be a main feature of the couples day
By Robyn Mclaughlin
from our guests.’ The couple may have not had the 24th of April they had planned but it was still one filled with friends, family and, of course, lots of cake.