Most of the ceremonies I conduct are for people who have done “little of note”. Often they’re the most moving of all.
Archives
Liz & Al’s Humanist Blessing at Oakley Court
Love is the ultimate doing word, the vital verb, and to be able to express that, in our own words, on the day we chose to formalise our journey together, was hugely important to us.
The New ‘I Do’
The lesson is simple; love will find a way.
Happiness is home made
I was flattered when Emma Miller, the editor of Hood Magazine, asked me to take over their ‘Man at the Back’ feature for a couple of issues. Here’s my Christmas gift to you – it’s still not too late to make something, and by doing so, make someone feel very special!
Farewell, Scottish Wedding Directory
Independent reviews were a great help to me and my Celebrate People colleagues.
‘We’re having a celebration of life’ is in danger of becoming a cliché.
It’s not always appropriate to celebrate a life, and it would be wrong to think that’s what a humanist funeral ceremony has to be.
Jen & Phil’s Lockdown Wedding Celebration
You don’t need to be surrounded by guests or be at a castle to still have a special day. “Celebrate your love for each other on that day and celebrate why it is that you want to get married.”
Rites of Passage
Can you imagine attending your own funeral? The old joke is that it’s the best party you’ll never go to, but that may no longer be true.Last year, in his Channel 4 series Grayson Perry helped to create a ‘living funeral’ for Roch, a man who’d been living with Motor Neurone disease, and it was … Continue Reading
Speaking at Funerals
I saw a story the other day that took me aback a bit. Father Joseph Anthony Toal is the Roman Catholic Bishop of Motherwell and he found himself all over the papers when an instruction he’d sent to his clergy was leaked to a journalist. He even made the Daily Telegraph. He told his priests to refuse requests … Continue Reading
Griefcast
I was pleased to see that Cariad Lloyd’s podcast on death won three prizes at the British Podcast Awards last week. Griefcast first came to my attention in 2016, thanks to this article in The Guardian, and it’s since notched up more than 30 episodes. Lloyd is a 35-year-old actress, comedian and writer from London whose father died of pancreatic … Continue Reading