“We’re going on honeymoon a few days after the ceremony and the airline/hotel has told us that if we bring a copy of our Marriage Certificate, they’ll upgrade us to First Class/The Presidential Suite. Can you give us a copy?” This is a question I’ve been asked a few times, and unfortunately the answer is … Continue Reading
Archives

Ethical Weddings: Why choose a Humanist Ceremony?
A little while ago, the lovely Katie Fewings asked me to write an article on Humanist Weddings for her online magazine, Ethical Weddings, (a site that does what it says on the tin). If you’re interested, you can read it here.

“What does a Humanist Wedding cost?”
“What does a Humanist Wedding cost?” Is one of the questions that people seem to be asking search engines. My answer used to be “a lot less than the bride will spend on the shoes”, which was just a wild surmise for which I had no hard evidence – until now. This is one of … Continue Reading

Need Help Planning your Wedding?
A lot of venues have their own in-house wedding planners and a splendid job they do too. But there are one or two hardy souls out there who can plan anything, anywhere, anytime. Wendy McArthur is one such. Her company Utopia Scotland is based near Gleneagles Hotel where she was an Events Manager for nine … Continue Reading
How to get in touch
I’ve had this blog for a while now but it’s taken until today for someone to point out (very kindly, I may add) that they couldn’t find out how to contact me. It’s very simple: just click on the ‘view my complete profile’ link, under the heading ‘ABOUT ME’, in the right hand column and … Continue Reading
Credit Crunch Weddings
As the economy plunges screaming over the cliff, it would be reasonable to expect people to postpone their wedding plans indefinitely in the hope that “things can only get better”. Oddly enough, that doesn’t seem to be happening and hardly a day goes by when I don’t get a call or an email from couples … Continue Reading

Face to Faith – Making Everyone Feel Welcome
Humanist weddings are non-religious but they’re not anti-religious and I believe it’s important that everyone feels welcome. It’s a subject that comes up fairly often when I meet people for the first time and although many couples have no interest in religion themselves, I always ask them about their friends and relatives so if they … Continue Reading
How much does a Humanist Wedding cost?
This year, 2020, my fee for a wedding is £500.00 and the first twenty miles of travel is free. If you’d like to have a rehearsal, you should add a further £100.00. They’re not essential but they can be a good idea, and you can read more about them here.

Best Man or Groom’s Men?
I don’t know when this began to happen, but this year I’ve found myself surrounded by more and more blokes. Like the grey squirrel and cosmetic surgery, the tradition of ‘The Groom’s Men’ has arrived here from the States and it’s definitely catching on. There’s certainly an argument for having a few guys to keep … Continue Reading
Legalities and Vows
I recently met a couple for their wedding rehearsal two nights before the big day and while we were talking about all the necessary arrangements I asked if they’d collected the marriage schedule from the Registrar’s office yet. They gave me a rather blank look and said “did we have to give some papers to … Continue Reading