Couple from Yorkshire host wedding early and livestream celebration overseas to beat second lockdown

A Yorkshire couple celebrated their wedding day early in order to beat the second lockdown in England – livestreaming their ceremony to friends and family.
Fiona and Andy Gammage live-streamed their wedding in Ripon to friends and relatives to beat the second lockdownFiona and Andy Gammage live-streamed their wedding in Ripon to friends and relatives to beat the second lockdown
Fiona and Andy Gammage live-streamed their wedding in Ripon to friends and relatives to beat the second lockdown

Fiona and Andy Gammage were originally planning to marry on Monday but, with the country entering into a nationwide lockdown, brought the day forward to Wednesday.

The couple, who had 15 guests in attendance, streamed the “intimate” ceremony in Ripon to around 37 further guests on Facebook Live, including family members in Chicago and Australia.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

With the exception of a few guests not being able to make the rescheduled date, everything was able to be rearranged, and they even had better weather than their original date.

Fiona and Andy Gammage live-streamed their wedding in Ripon to friends and relatives to beat the second lockdownFiona and Andy Gammage live-streamed their wedding in Ripon to friends and relatives to beat the second lockdown
Fiona and Andy Gammage live-streamed their wedding in Ripon to friends and relatives to beat the second lockdown

“We were watching the announcement on Saturday. I think it was delayed by a couple of hours and by probably half five we’d confirmed a lot of the different elements,” Mr Gammage, 31, told the PA news agency.

“It probably took a couple of hours… we can’t thank everyone enough, they pulled out all the stops to try and accommodate us.

Mrs Gammage, 30, said: “It all seemed to work out and miraculously come together, and everyone who could be there came.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“We set up the Facebook Live thinking that it’s the next best thing for all those people that we can’t have there.

“We couldn’t even have hymns so it was quite a short ceremony, but it was a really nice atmosphere.”

Mr and Mrs Gammage, who recently moved in with family in Stamford Bridge, York, to avoid tighter restrictions at their home in Leeds, said they will have a larger wedding event next year.

“We were really conscious we wanted to stick to all the regulations, so we had 15 at the wedding and a socially distanced meal,” Mr Gammage told PA.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“We weren’t ever planning to do the evening do – back when the regulations changed and the numbers got reduced we decided that we were going to split the day anyway.

“We’re going to do an evening do next year, hopefully when all the regulations have been lifted, and invite everyone we possibly can do.”

The wedding planning was not without complications, with their pageboy and best man testing positive for coronavirus and their maid of honour having to self-isolate just weeks before the wedding.

“The smaller ceremony was perfect, it does mean that you have your nearest and dearest there and you do get more time to speak to your guests,” Mrs Gammage told PA.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“It’s tough telling people that they can’t come… they’re aware of all of the regulations and restrictions but it’s really sad and it’s really difficult.

“The livestream made it feel a lot better. I wouldn’t change anything about that at all, it was perfect.”

Support The Yorkshire Post and become a subscriber today. Your subscription will help us to continue to bring quality news to the people of Yorkshire. In return, you'll see fewer ads on site, get free access to our app and receive exclusive members-only offers. Click here to subscribe.

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.