We had a busy weekend here at The Great Hall at Mains, with the lovely wedding of Neil Brooks and Laura Pike kicking things off on Saturday 15th October 2011.
The weather over the past few weeks has been typical of an English October, so you can imagine our delight (and more then likely Neil and Laura’s), when the wind died down, the rain clouds vanished and the sun put in an appearance! What a lovely, fresh, autumn Saturday it was, so we flung open our doors with relish to welcome Neil and Laura along with their family and friends to The Great Hall.
The couple opted to keep things really simple for the ceremony, making the most of our lovely gold chairs by leaving them exposed instead of opting for them to be dressed, which we think really complements the hall. It just goes to show that sometimes, less is more.
As we put the finishing touches to the hall ready for the wedding, we welcomed Flower Design, one of our favourite suppliers to The Great Hall. Flower Design provided these lovely pedestals which lined the entrance to the aisle perfectly.
Neil, along with his ushers and best man Chris, arrived here at 12.30pm, ready to greet his guests. They posed for pictures in the hall and gardens, with Neil (second in from left) looking cool as a cucumber.
Making the most of the mid October sunshine, guests mingled on the terrace whilst awaiting the arrival of Laura, who was being transported from local hotel The Shard Riverside Inn, courtesy of her sister’s boyfriend Steve.
As guests were called to take their seats, the Bridesmaids, looking perfect in plum, gathered on the driveway ready to help Laura out of the car and fix her dress ready for the all important journey down the aisle. The roll of Bridesmaids has changed somewhat from the traditional responsibilities, where Bridesmaids were included in the day as they looked similar to the Bride, confusing any evil sprits that may be around to sabotage the bride’s journey up the aisle to her future husband. Luckily, in more modern times, the only spirits at The Great Hall are those we stock behind the bar, so the Bridesmaids can concentrate fully on providing support to the Bride on her big day, something Laura’s chosen ladies did splendidly.
Laura looked truly radiant as she arrived with her father Geoff. We just love her fitted lace detailed dress with its amazing bow!
After ensuring everything was in place, the bridesmaids made their way down the aisle, followed by Laura and her father, towards groom Neil, who was waiting patently for her by the fireplace.
The vows ensued, followed by the couple posing for pictures while signing the register. The registrars table was complemented with another of Flower Design's creations. Again, the flowers really complemented the hall and gave it a lovely country garden feel.
As the formalities drew to a close, our excellent bar team were busy preparing the post ceremony drinks, which were tray served as the new Mr and Mrs Brooks and their guests made their way towards the bar area. We pride ourselves on our service ( the finest in the North West where weddings are concerned ) and were featured last year in a BBC TV programme entitled 'Michel Roux's Service'. Maybe you caught us showing those young apprentices how it should be done?
The wedding day wouldn’t be complete without the obligatory confetti throw. The tradition of throwing confetti dates back to a pagan wedding ritual when the couple were showered with rice and grain to promote fertility, prosperity and continuity for the couple. Fortunately for Neil and Laura, who we are quite sure would not appreciate being covered in rice and grain, guests lined the driveway and doused the newlyweds in dried rose petals, provided by us in personalised confetti cones. Much nicer!
Meanwhile, away from all the excitement we were busy in the hall preparing for the Wedding Breakfast. The table plan really was beautifully crafted, and reflected the plum colour scheme for the day. With cutlery, glasses, menu cards and centrepieces in place, the finishing touches were added as we placed the favours of bags of sweets – which also acted as place cards – on the tables. The finished tables looked lovely with the twinkling candles and purple petals.
Guests were seated for the wedding breakfast and we caught the newlyweds as they took a moment together to reflect on the day, before being announced into the room to rounds of applause!
We have three catering options here at The Great Hall and the couple opted for Blackburn based caterers With A Twist. With A Twist served up a very seasonal starter of pumpkin and butternut squash soup, followed by a chicken dish for the main course and a very naughty-but-nice looking chocolate pot for dessert.
Once guests were suitably satisfied and the always anticipated speeches had finished, we ushered guests into the bar area to prepare the hall for the evening reception. One of the key elements of the evening celebrations is the traditional cutting of the cake which leads into the first dance. So, as the bride and groom prepared to take centre stage we moved the cake into prime position on the dance floor and got our camera at the ready to capture the moment. We loved the detail on the figures on the cake - amazing!
Following the first dance, to Cold Play’s ‘Yellow’, Rob Harris – DJ extraordinaire – courtesy of Camscott Leisure ensured the floor was well and truly full throughout the evening, playing a selection of songs to suite all musical tastes.
As the evening drew to a close, the couple prepared to bid their guests farewell as they made their way towards The Shard Riverside Inn for their first night as Mr and Mrs. The couple will be starting married life in style, honeymooning in France
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