Manchester city centre. We also had a few guests with mobility problems, and they have great accessibility. It didn’t hurt that we were big Smiths fans back in the day, and the building is so iconic for many other reasons too. It’s also worth mentioning that as a same sex couple – even if we’d wanted to get married in a church (we didn’t) we wouldn’t be allowed to as it’s against the law.” Wanting to create the day exactly how they envisioned, Emma and Siobhan were innovative when it came to the finer details of their day, along with the help of loved ones. “The bouquets were a mix of plastic flowers and leaves from a friend’s garden; friends Steve, Karl and Caroline helped decorate one of the rooms with rainbow umbrellas and bunting to name but a couple of ways guests helped.” Two double-decker buses took guests to The Black Friar pub where the evening’s entertainment took place. “The buses had our names on the front, and we booked two tour guides to give our guests a tour of Manchester first. My friend John Ryan is a tour guide so his present to us was planning and doing the tour. The route included places that were significant to us – such as Manchester’s gay village, Gaydio and the pub where we first met.” For catering, guests had an informal offering of sandwiches, cakes and plenty of fizz at the club and then a full hot buffet at The Black Friar later in the evening. “The food there is outstanding, and we were able to order different ‘stations’ like American, Asian and a ’skewer’ station,” adds Siobhan. In terms of favours, packets of rose petal confetti from the charity Refuge was given on each seat; a charity that supports women who are victims of domestic violence. “We also gave everyone a gift of a rainbow broach from Cancer Research UK. The rainbow reminded people they were at a gay wedding, and it was also a very important charity for us to support. Emma lost her sister to breast cancer in 2020 and although she misses her every single day, she felt her absence on her wedding day especially,” shares Siobhan. LOOKING THE PART Emma looked stunning on the big day in a white jump suit from Reiss and zebra-print Dr. Martens sandals that were bought by best man Chris Holliday. Siobhan, went all-out with no less than three wedding dresses as she couldn’t make her mind up. “One was from the Bury hospice bridal charity shop, and two (including the one I eventually wore) were from Vinted!” Siobhan teamed her dresses with DMs as did their daughter, Niamh, who was two at the time, and wore a flowergirl dress. The bridesmaids wore a mix of purple and green dresses – suffragette colours – as a nod to Manchester’s historical past! TIME TO CELEBRATE As well as a disco, the couple also had a Dolly Parton impersonator Hello Dolly, aka Kay Molyneaux. “She was the best singer! She went down a storm. Everybody loves Dolly Parton and she really was the next best thing. And from Wigan!” 26
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