A wedding on a moor

Saturday 27 May 2017

The weekend of Hannah and Alex’s wedding

Laura, Ali and the boys arrived at our house last night, quite late so that they could visit the Chill Factor ski and sledge centre at the Trafford Centre. We were all up early to get ready to go, with LAAF leaving just before we did – we had packed almost everything the day before.

Ian and I had a clear journey up to Oxenhope, where the wedding ceremony was to be in the parish church. We stopped for a second breakfast at Sainsbury’s in Colne then had a spectacular drive over Keighley Moor in the sunshine. We found our way to the church where we had to smarten up in the car park. Everyone gathered in the churchyard, then went into the church.

We sat with Martin and Tricia and spent a while trying to remember who people were.

Hannah came in looking stunning in a fitted lace dress, with bridesmaids in teal.

At the end of the service the threatened thunder storm arrived and we left the church in a torrential downpour which lasted almost the full drive to the farm for the reception.

We spent the time before the meal outside in the garden talking to Barbara and Isobel, and Jan’s friend Fiona and her chap, there with her two daughters.

Into the tipis, which were beautifully decorated, for the meal. The space was much bigger than expected, although we were a bit tucked away in the corner. We sat with Jane and Mandy, Barbara and Isobel, with Martin and Tricia on the other side. The meal was excellent – a platter of Yorkshire meats, sausage rolls, pork pie and French bread, roast beef and the usual, then a collection of desserts on a piece of slate.

Unusually, the speeches were after the first course, which was probably a good idea – it meant that the speakers could get on and enjoy their meal and people were not too drunk to listen.

Soon after seven o’clock, Laura and boys arrived and we stayed for a short while longer, then drove the little boys up to the holiday cottage. It’s a barn conversion on a farm near the village of Draughton, a bit east of Skipton. The boys were very excited and took a while to get to bed, and then we followed soon after. We didn’t hear Laura and Ali come in.