A humanist wedding is a wonderful privilege. It’s the only form of legal marriage ceremony where you are free to say in your own words why you’re getting married, what your hopes are for the future and what you want to promise to one another. It’s also a terrifying responsibility. Where do we start, what … Continue Reading
Some people like to plan their weddings far in advance. Today for example, I was asked to hold a date for a wedding in three years time, which is some kind of a record – for me, anyway. George and Momo did it the other way round. They got in touch at the end of … Continue Reading
There’s something about this photograph that makes me think of 60’s TV series like ‘The Avengers’, or ‘Man From Uncle’. Maybe it’s the haircuts. Or the strange costumes. Or the location – a rather spectacular country house not too far from Edinburgh, called Broxmouth Park. It was my first visit and I hope I have … Continue Reading
Fran and And first got in touch with me last August; they’d wanted to marry in Fran’s parents’ garden and that led them to stumble across the HSS website. As they wrote at the time, “When we read a bit more about it, we both felt that the humanist values were very similar to our own … Continue Reading
“Thank you so much for making the ceremony so special and memorable. I’m so sorry you didn’t stay… we were still dancing at 5 am!”
And we’re back… This is a bit of a cheat really, as nobody’s ever sung it, but it has been played as the bride walked down the aisle…. at number 5, Billy Idol and the fabulous White Wedding sorry, this is one of those “embed disabled by request” ones… At 4, something deeply Scottish, Mhairi’s … Continue Reading
I’m just about to go out to a wedding rehearsal, and just reading the script made me smile and remember the many many different songs people have chosen to sing at their wedding. Here’s my not-quite Top Ten, pop-pickers In at number 10, The Ramones Down to 9 from last week’s number 4, It Must … Continue Reading
I’m used to getting emails from couples I’ve married, but this is a first – a message from the parents of the bride, whose wedding I conducted last weekend over in Fife, at Balbirnie Castle! It was a great day, and I’m pretty sure that Victoria and Will enjoyed it too, but as they’re away … Continue Reading
My colleague Mandy Evans Ewing and I were invited to join the Chaplains from the various universities of Scotland at their annual meeting which this year was held in St Andrews. She’s the Humanist Chaplain for the University of Glasgow and Glasgow Caledonian University, while I’m the Humanist Contact at the University of Edinburgh Chaplaincy Centre. It … Continue Reading
I remember that when I first spoke to Matt and Angela, they were going to marry at Edinburgh Castle, which in late January can be a cold and forbidding place, so I was very pleased when they told me they’d changed their minds and booked into Edinburgh’s most discreet private venue, One Royal Circus. A complete … Continue Reading