A spring ceremony and Marylebone Room wedding photography with two dogs as ring bearers.  If you are planning on having your dog with you on your wedding day I’m a huge fan. Westminster Register Office is the only register office in London which allows well behaved dogs to be a part of your ceremony. It is down to the individual Registrar to decide so do bring it up with them as early as possible in your planning. They are very keen to match you with the right team.

Rachel and Miles chose the Marylebone Room for their Westminster Register Office wedding. It has elegant wooden panelling and a chic vibe. The oval ceiling light gives off a warm glow and the mix of a sofa and bucket armchairs means that everyone feels relaxed. They had nine human guests and two much smaller furry ones.

Castro and Enzo are Rachel and Miles’s Cavalier King Charles Spaniel puppies. They arrived looking resplendent in black tie and bespoke spotty racing green bow ties to match Miles’s bow tie and pocket square which were designed by London menswear accessories designer Ian Scott Kettle. When Rachel first told me that their dogs would be attending I had a slight meltdown at the thought that they wouldn’t hire me to photograph their day. I think she realised, thank goodness. So here they all were – the fur babies the centre of attention – as they waited for Rachel’s entrance. Castro turned to watch his mum as she walked in with Granny Annie. Meanwhile, Enzo was having a mini nap on Granny Lola. They both behaved impeccably throughout the ceremony.

The moment the Registrar announced that they were married everyone started clapping. Enzo woke up and went into full scale alert. He and Castro bounded up to the front and began to run in circles around the human huggers. Just after the Registrar handed Rachel and Miles their marriage certificate I walked to the exit door to find an usher the other side asking me to hang on for ‘three minutes’. I closed the door and turned around to look at everyone. Van Morrison had started already. I held up three fingers and mouthed, ‘three minutes’. Cue instantaneous dancing. It was the funniest three minutes ever. Bonkers in the best possible sense.

After groups and a few couple photos under the columns they all walked to nearby Chiltern Firehouse for lunch. The tenth annual Tweed Run bicycle ride was coming up Chiltern Street just as Rachel and Miles hit the corner of Dorset Street. Hundreds of cyclists dressed in period gear riding beautiful old bikes started to wave and ring their bells. It was a wonderful sight (and sound).

Chiltern Firehouse has a no photography rule (dogs are a ‘yes’ though) which is quite refreshing. I was however able to get a shot of the beautiful orange blossom and pistachio wedding cake made by Honeypie Bakery. To mark their stay I took a last photo in their beautiful bedroom (photos there fine) and then left them to enjoy their lunch in the stunning private dining room.

Ceremony venue – Marylebone Room, Old Marylebone Town Hall
Reception venue – Chiltern Firehouse
Rachel’s dress – Coast
Rachel’s shoes – Kurt Geiger
Rachel’s jewellery – necklace Goldsmiths’ Fair 10 years ago / earrings Links of London / Great Grandmother’s rings
Rachel’s seed pearl and flower hair piece – Accessorize and eBay
Rachel’s hair – self (Superdrug ++ hairspray)
Rachel’s make up artist – self (Rachel’s motto “more mascara, more eyeliner”)
Florist – Jane Packer
Miles’s suit and waistcoat – Vintage Donna Karan
Miles’s shirt – Richard James
Miles’s bow tie and pocket square, and Castro & Enzo’s matching bow ties – Ian Scott Kettle
Miles’s shoes – Charles Tyrwhitt
Cake – Honeypie Bakery
Bike Ride – Tweed Run

If you are marrying at Old Marylebone Town Hall and would like more information do check out my Old Marylebone Town Hall page.

For more about the Marylebone Room have a look at my Marylebone Room page. The Marylebone Room is the second most popular room with my clients with nearly 25% choosing it. I’ve covered 3 so far in 2018 and have 4 more booked.