The Ashes Barns Wedding Videographer

How did you guys meet? 

We met in a small village up in the French Alps called Orelle! Via a mutual friend, I was volunteering at a cycling event and Kieran was one of the pro cyclists (at the time!) – basically I was serving him food, drinks and waiting on him for a few days! He took my number on his Blackberry (that makes us feel old!) during the party on the last night there! I was still studying at Birmingham Uni at the time, which just so happened to be a short drive from where his family lived so it was like it was meant to be! I am originally from London and, after our return from France, the next race he was selected for happened to be RideLondon so we went along to watch and he met my parents pretty much straight away! The rest, as they say, is history. 

Tell me about yourselves, how do you like to spend your time?

Kieran still works within the cycling industry, he works for a company called Velobrands. I also work within the sports industry organising social sports and events. We are both big sports fans as I’m sure you’ve gathered, so lots of time is spent cycling & playing netball – but we also absolutely love going out to eat and trying out restaurants. Also like to spend our spare time drinking wine, specifically of the red variety! Oh and lots of dog walking – our two greyhounds made a special appearance at our wedding, they’re total legends! 

How did the proposal go down?

Back to the Alps for this one! We were on a family skiing holiday and Kieran proposed at the top of a mountain. I thought he had something wrong with his ski boots but turns out he was getting down on one knee to propose! Gorgeous memories from that day – blue skies, sunshine and a cold bottle of Rose and a big bowl of pasta at the top of the mountain to celebrate our engagement! I did struggle to get down the mountain initially as I was so in shock!! 

How did you choose The Ashes as your venue?

Well…a bit of a Covid twist with this one! We were originally due to get married at The Mill Barns in Shropshire but, due to Covid faff, we ended up switching to The Ashes a year down the line. We had already viewed (and loved) The Ashes but at the time decided on The Mill due to the larger capacity & more accommodation – however, they say things are always meant to be… and now we cannot imagine not having got married at The Ashes. It was perfect for us and our wonderful guests. 

What sort of experience did you want your guests to have?

We always planned for our day to be a relaxed one, no stress just lots of fun, big smiles and plenty of dancing and celebrating with our nearest and dearest! After all the challenges of Covid, it was the best feeling ever to see everyone back together, hugging, partying, chatting and simply having a good time. 

Describe some of the details and stylings, did your wedding have a theme?

I am a big lover of orange, so whilst it was a ‘loose’ theme, there were plenty of nods to my favourite colour. Orange bridal heels, gorgeous orange blooms in my bouquet (shout out to Kathy from All Bunched up!), place names made out of dried oranges, Aperol Spritz for reception drinks, orange bunting, candles, dried flower arrangements dotted around etc etc! We also had a bit of a cycling/French theme for our table names seeing as that’s where our relationship started out – French mountains / cycling climbs made up our table names. 

Why did you choose to have a wedding film?

Well lots of people had said to us that one of the best decisions they had made was to have their wedding filmed – something they could always look back on to relive their wonderful day. Then I found Roo via our venue website when I was searching for videographers – and I sat and cried (in the best way possible!) at how amazing every single one of his films was. The happiness I felt when he said he was available for our wedding, we are SO glad we had the day filmed! 

What was your best decision during planning?

Kieran would say that the best decision was to leave the planning to me…! 

What are your favourite memories from the day?

Seeing and celebrating with all our guests, particularly as we hadn’t seen so many of them for such a long time because of Covid. It was the most amazing feeling ever to have them all together in the same room. It was also Kieran’s Mum’s 60th on the same day so it was just so special to be celebrating her big milestone as well. We also absolutely loved the ceremony, it felt so special to be up there making our vows and knowing we were finally making a lifelong commitment to each other. I wish I could go back to that moment, it was like being in our own little bubble of pure happiness. The evening was pretty damn good too – the dancing was next level I must say! I even kicked off my heels and did some Irish dancing with one of my oldest friends – can thank the Dutch courage for that! Everything was so good from start to finish, it’s so hard to choose favourite moments!!  

What advice would you give to couples planning a wedding?

Don’t get caught up in the little details and feel you have to spend a ridiculous amount of money on those ‘extras’ – at the end of the day, what makes your wedding is the people who are there and the suppliers who will help you through from start to finish. The day is about the two of you and your love for each other, so let that speak for itself. Just have fun and try to be present in the moment (easier said than done – it is an overwhelming, but totally incredible, experience!)