When we want to talk about love, we tend to get tongue-tied. That’s when we turn for help to the poets, because they have the gift of expressing our thoughts and feelings better than we can ourselves. Few living poets do this better than Edward Monkton

I first heard his poem, A Lovely Love Story, at the wedding of Elizabeth and Bengtis, way back in 2009. Since then, I’ve heard lots of people tell the story of the Lovely Dinosaur and the Lovely Other Dinosaur, but nobody’s done it better than Ben and Finn at the wedding of Megan and David.

The poem was read by Megan’s brother Matthew, who I’d married to Karen on a gloriously sunny afternoon the year before, but Finn and Ben stole the show with their drawings.

They had them arranged on a kind of turnspit, and every time Matthew read a new verse, they turned it over to show their version of the new illustration.

It’s not quite as breathtaking an homage to Mr Monkton as the tattoo Lauren Roach now has on her back, but it was much more cute.

And when I got in touch with Megan and David to ask for these great photos by David Ross they told me some wonderful news. Megan’s going to have a baby, and they’ve asked me to conduct a naming and welcoming ceremony on their wedding anniversary this year! 

I wonder what poems we’ll read this time?

My thanks to Megan and David, and of course to Mr Monkton for letting me use his portrait.