Who would’ve thought you could meet the love of your life in Kremlin in Belfast?!
Join us as we delve into the extraordinary journey of Beau and David who defied distance to unite and create the perfect romance. In this inspiring tale, we explore how their love story unfolded. From the initial spark of connection to the triumphant moment of saying “I do,” this article highlights the commitment that brought these two souls together.
Get ready to be moved by a love story that proves love knows no borders.
How did you both first meet?
We met on a night out in the Kremlin in Belfast. It was the 19th of September 2009. Beau was over for a few days, visiting friends. David was persuaded to go out that night with his friend, who was friends with Beau’s friends (if that makes sense)! That’s where we first met. Incidentally, Beau wasn’t going to come over to Ireland as his sister had just given birth the day before to her first child.
We were both out of long-term relationships and looking forward to single life for a while… That didn’t last long!
It was love at first sight and that night it felt like everyone else had blended into the background. We talked for what felt like hours and we’re not even sure what we talked about! After, we all went back to the same house that night and carried on drinking and talking. We both knew we had a connection the moment we clapped eyes on each other but we managed to behave ourselves that night. We were the first ones awake the next morning and we talked all morning until the rest of the house woke up. When it came to saying goodbye, we both had a horrible sick and empty feeling.
We spoke to each other daily and managed to visit each other a few times before David moved to Birmingham in March 2010.
Tell us about the proposal!
On the 9th of August 2018, David made the brave decision to propose. We’d talked about marriage previously, but going abroad always took precedence! David was keen on this date as wanted to share the engagement date with his parents’ wedding anniversary. Beau had taken David to Copenhagen for his birthday for a few days and David saw this as the perfect opportunity for the proposal.
David had pre-selected some spots but he knew he would know the right spot once they got there… After a lot of walking and sightseeing, we finally ended up in a beautiful secluded park, sitting under a windmill. David forgot to get down on one knee and started blabbering before finally popping the question. Beau accepted, and all David could think was, ‘Why has Beau got a bit of olive stuck in his teeth’!
When did you start planning your wedding?
It was many years later before we set a date for the wedding. We were at Beau’s cousin’s wedding in America in June 2022 and all the family asked when we were tying the knot. During the ceremony at the wedding, we looked at each other and said, ‘Let’s do it next year’! The date was set for the 10th of August, 2023. Sharing David’s parents’ anniversary, this would also mark 5 years since the engagement.
We woke up the next day in a hangover haze and reality hit. We were getting married next year!
After the wedding, came back to the UK and then flew over to Ireland two days later (this is not recommended from a jet lag point of view)! We went to visit the friend who had originally introduced us to one another in Castlewellan. We announced the date and David mentioned he had been looking into weddings at the Slieve Donard Hotel in Newcastle. Our friend said, “Well, it’s just down the road. Let’s go.” We bumped into the wedding coordinator was shown around and pretty much signed up straight away. Choosing the venue for us was easy. It was the only venue we wanted and see. Over the coming months, we made various enquiries for the photographer and the cake etc and decided on the invites. January 2023 is when the full wedding planning really started and everything mostly went to plan.
Who captured your day?
Whilst it would be great to have every single moment captured in pictures and videos, we decided on one photographer only as we just wanted guests to enjoy the day for what it was. Leigh managed to capture every moment without getting in the way and put the camera-shy guests at ease with his dad’s jokes.
We chose Leigh as our photographer based on his testimonials on his website and the fact that his pictures were natural and did not appear over-edited. We were very happy with the results.
What did you wear?
Our colour theme was green, white and gold. We went with this theme to symbolise both the Irish (David being from Ireland) and Indian flags (Beau’s family being from an Indian heritage). We did take the liberty of changing orange to gold! Beau wore a traditional Indian suit, which was all gold with a green scarf and green turban. David wore a charcoal colour suit, white shirt, light grey double-breasted waistcoat and emerald green tie.
For the evening we both changed into matching outfits, charcoal colour trousers, short-sleeved white shirts, light grey double-breasted waistcoats and emerald green bow ties. There was a light panic as Beau’s suit was still in India two weeks before the wedding!
What was your favourite part of the day?
David: It’s hard to choose. I loved the whole day from start to finish. Particular highlights include the cheer of the guests when we were declared married, seeing all the kids up dancing and generally having fun and hearing some guests say it was the best wedding ever.
Beau: The biggest highlight was seeing all family members together and getting on so well as this was the first time the majority of them had met. It was a feat getting folk over from England, Italy and the US.
Any advice you can give?
Enjoy every moment of the planning and the build-up. It doesn’t need to be stressful and it’s all part of getting married.. when your big day is over you will look back and miss those planning days, even the stressful ones..
We’d do it all again if we had the chance…and the money!
The Dream Team
Venue – Slieve Donard Hotel
Room dressing – Add a little sparkle
Cake – WedCakes
Celebrant – Humanist Wedding – Michael Conlan
Photographer – Leigh Parke Photography
Singer – Maria Cameron Music
Evening – DJ Kenny K
