'It can't go wrong, this is somebody's actual wedding day' - Hull contestant Natasha Nichols on competing to be Ultimate Wedding Planner

The resulting wedding day became the first to feature in new BBC Two reality television series Ultimate Wedding Planner when the show began last week. It sees aspiring planners take control of the big day of six brave couples, under the watchful eyes of a judging panel made up of hospitality expert Fred Sirieix, craft and business guru Sara Davies and wedding planner to the rich and famous Raj Somaiya.

“At the heart of everything was real life couples expecting real life wedding days,” says 32-year-old Natasha, from Hull. “I know how that feels, I’m married and I’ve had that day – I know how magical and perfect you want it. And we were in control of that…

"These couples were entrusting us to make their vision. I got so emotional at times because when things were unravelling and going wrong, I was like no it can’t go wrong, this is somebody’s actual day, this is really important.”

Natasha’s own wedding day nearly five years ago started her on a journey of planning for others for a living. Work since she left school in Scarborough had been varied until then but it had always been creative.

From 17, she spent six years running a pottery painting business in the picturesque North Yorkshire village of Thorton le Dale before becoming a beautician focused on brows and lashes. She would also – and still does – create a range of art commissions as well as design scenery and props for local shows and productions.

“When I got married myself nearly five years ago, I used all the skills I had and created my own wedding,” Natasha says. “And I completely fell in love with weddings and events. My family and my guests said this is your calling, why aren’t you creating people a day?”

A Labour of Love has now been up and running for four years. Natasha’s creative business provides bespoke props for weddings and events, as well as offering sign-writing, design, sculpture and art services. “The main thing is creating props, backdrops and doing stationery and invitations, I absolutely love doing those creative elements of somebody’s day,” she says, “but I do also offer full wedding planning as well.”

When she applied for Ultimate Wedding Planners, Natasha, who is mum to a seven-year-old daughter and three-year-old twins, was working on her first paid wedding.

“I was very new to it, in the midst of planning this wedding, which was nerve wracking but also exciting and I thought let’s jump on this (television) opportunity. There’s no better way to learn than throwing yourself in at the deep end so that’s what I did.

“Also, I’m a mum and I’ve been solely mum, doing my crafts and things on an evening and sorting out weddings, planning every evening. To immerse myself in it fully through this process was something I really wanted."

She admits that perhaps she was a little naive. With the contestants pitted against one another, and yet forced to work together, there are more than a few tears, raised voices and crossed swords. There’s also a lot of pressure – the planners have just three days from brief to nuptials to craft a show-stopping wedding with a budget of £10,000.

“Everything on the first day was just a bit of a shock to the system I think,” Natasha says. “I was very much a rabbit in the headlights….I also realised that just because I didn’t view it as a competition - I viewed it as a learning experience, it didn’t mean other people didn’t.

"There were seven other egos who all wanted to do their own thing, showcase their talent, be the best, show how fantastic they are. Ultimately what I learnt is that there’s so much drive and passion in every single one of them. Emotions ran high at times and people did butt heads but it’s because we all cared.”

Little did she know how much she would learn through the process. In week one, judges told all the contestants there was “a lot of room for improvement”. For Natasha, there was praise for her “relentless” work ethic, but she was warned “it’s not the Tash show – there’s no ‘i’ in team”.

“I’ve never worked as a team before, I’ve always been self employed and gone out and done things on my own,” Natasha reflects, “so the teamwork element for me was something I really had to learn to deal with. I wasn’t the one making all the decisions anymore…Now I’m at the point where I’d love to employ and work with a team.

“I learnt incredible amounts about myself and I learnt how every challenge has an answer. I think that’s an amazing thing to come away with - if something hasn’t worked, find a solution to a problem. If something goes wrong, we can pick ourselves up and sort it out.”

Since the show, it’s been back to business for Natasha – but not just one. She now also runs Hull restaurant Stretch Pizza with husband Jason. “I’m still doing people’s weddings,” she says. “I’m still very much in events and weddings – and loving it, as well as being a mum to three little monsters and helping my husband run a restaurant. The truth of the matter is that I really love to be busy.”

Made by BBC Studios, Ultimate Wedding Planner is next on BBC Two tonight at 9pm and will be available to watch on iPlayer.