There aren’t many people who can say they’ve slept in their husband’s bed before they’ve even met him, but due to having a university friend in common, Becky often stayed the night in future partner Tom’s room while he was away – which would have been a fantastic icebreaker when the pair finally did meet!
Due to a deliberately off-putting conversation Tom initiated with Becky, she thought he didn’t want to get married, so his proposal on a bridge over the River Cam after six years together did come as somewhat of a surprise. “It felt like being hit by a bus – in a nice way, though!” In fact, Tom has been thinking about his proposal for months, and had even commissioned a special ring from a Bristol jewellers. “It was a very unusual design and although I feel bad about it now, the first thing I said was ‘Are you joking?’ as it didn’t look like a traditional engagement ring, so I thought it might be plastic and that Tom was just messing around!” It didn’t take Tom long to persuade Becky of his seriousness, however. “It was very heartfelt and special,” says Becky.
After attending a wedding in a barn, which featured a barn dance in the evening, Becky and Tom wanted the same for their nuptials, so picked Wick Farm near Bath for both their ceremony and reception. “It was very well designed and decorated, and had the warm welcoming feeling we were looking for,” explains Becky. “Location was also important, as a lot of our friends live in Bristol and Bath so we didn’t want it to be too much hassle for people to get there.” Having a relaxed day was important for the couple, too. “Tom and I are both quite laid back and happy people and I wanted our wedding to reflect this, so everyone felt relaxed and comfortable and was able to enjoy the happiness of the day.”
The couple had also planned to decorate the venue with homegrown flowers, but things didn’t go quite to plan, thanks to some plant-munching bugs. “Despite daily slug collections, lots of the flowers we grew ourselves didn’t make it,” explains Tom. “Luckily, when Becky told her boss Claire about the troubles we were having with the flowers, she and her husband Bill came to the rescue. They arrived early in the morning with half of their garden and proceeded to decorate the whole venue.” “They are both such lovely people and it made it feel really special to know they had made all that effort just for us,” adds Becky.
Becky didn’t want to miss out on singing during their civil ceremony, so guests were asked to sing ‘Can’t Take My Eye Of You’ by Frankie Valli during the ceremony. “We picked it together as it is a upbeat, fun song that sums up how we feel about each other. In our order of service I asked everyone to sing as loudly as they could. I was a bit nervous about how it would go but it worked really well and everyone got really into it – it was one of my favourite and funniest bits of our wedding!” she says.
And for the couple themselves? “It was the best day of my life,” says Tom. Becky agrees. “Sorry to be predictable but it really was the best day of my life too!” The fun didn’t stop after the wedding, however, as the very next day, the couple embarked on a seven month honeymoon, travelling to Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Laos, Australia and New Zealand – a trip of a lifetime after the best day of their lives.