Inside: An Exquisite London Wedding

Gwen Doran (33) and Nathan Wilson (31). Originally from Canada (Nate) and Ireland (Gwen), we have lived all over the world but, like the blurb from a bad 90’s romcom, they met one night at a university battle of the bands in New Zealand when a friend asked Nate to pretend to be Gwen’s boyfriend for the night to shake off a drunk unrequited admirer. It was a shock to everyone involved when the ruse became reality.

In September 2019 they took a trip to Mallorca, one of their favourite places. After Nate’s original plan to propose in the Tramuntana mountains was derailed by a wrong turn and a 4-hour uphill detour culminating in a girlfriend so drenched in sweat that her white dress was almost see-through, Nate pivoted to a later sunset walk through an orange grove at Finca Ca N’ai. Looking out over the mountains they had climbed earlier, Nate produced the ring, a letter, and a bottle of champagne he’d hidden nearby and they toasted to their future together.

Absolutely the best part of our day was….

Seeing all our friends and family come together from all over the world after such a long time apart.

We chose to get married at…

The Old Marylebone Town Hall.

Like many couples, Covid put paid to our original wedding plans. When we began planning again, we wanted something simpler and less vulnerable to restrictions (goodbye Tuscany!). In the end, we decided the only thing formal about our wedding day would be the attire and with that in mind, The Old Marylebone Town Hall was the perfect setting for us.

I knew I found ‘The One’ when…

We booked our wedding ceremony a little more than five months in advance. By the time we had secured our reception venue and sent out our invitations, the wedding was a mere three months away and Gwen had not even tried on a dress. Many dress shops would not even allow an appointment to try on a dress with those timescales. Gwen’s dream of a bespoke Emilia Wickstead dress seemed improbable to say the least but as luck would have it, she found a simple dress within the Emilia Wickstead ready-to-wear collection and a seamstress who had worked for Emilia Wickstead previously and was able to incorporate some of the elements of the bespoke dresses that Gwen loved so much.

For her evening dress, Gwen’s seamstress brought her vision of a flowing one-shoulder gown with a feather trim to life using the most luxurious silk and ostrich feathers. The kind of dress that cried out for a twirl but being cut to ankle length, it was practical enough so that as the evening got late, flat shoes could ensure the dancing continued on.

The most enjoyable moments of planning were…

Choosing our rings, selecting our music, and tasting the wines.

The hardest part of planning was…

Hearing ‘sorry we have no availability’ over and over as we searched for suppliers.

Our wedding menu highlights were…

Honestly, neither of us can even remember eating on the day which is why we are so glad we got to try the menu and wines beforehand.

Our first dance song was…

Escape (The Pina Colada Song).

The best accounts to follow on Instagram for big-day inspo are…

I followed @togetherjournal and @hellomaymagazine

My top three tips for any couple would be…

Gwen: Decide on the elements of the wedding that matter most to you, focus on them and forget the rest.

Nate: Bring a spare shirt.

Both: Get really organised in the run-up to the wedding but the night before the wedding just stop: Stop planning, stop delegating, just let it go. Give yourself a chance to get properly excited about marrying each other and then go and lap up every minute of your wedding day. It won’t be perfect but nothing (including the marriage to come) ever will be.