Gemma & Richard

Scroll for Gemma & Richard’s big moments, contact books, wedding entertainment ideas, and their supplier’s top tips. Planning sorted!

The Couple

Richard and Gemma met in 2011, while working together at Sky News. Over a few years, their close friendship blossomed into romance – once work obstacles were out of the way! Richard explains, “Just as I was preparing to ask Gemma out on a date, I was made her boss! It meant I had to wait to ask her out until I moved into a new department.”

Still, he had to work hard for the privilege, “She took some convincing! I knew I wanted to marry Gemma before our first date, so I had to make the effort.”

Gemma concedes, “His dates convinced me! He took me on a helicopter ride and a speedboat ride – he pulled out all the stops. Most importantly, he was a very good friend to me; he seemed to understand me, and made me laugh!”

They were engaged in February 2016, and celebrated their nuptials on a beautiful day in the Surrey countryside on 27 May 2017.

I knew I wanted to marry Gemma before our first date…

The Proposal

Gemma describes the beautiful lead-up to the big question, “The Proposal was stunning; it was at a luxury log cabin in a forest in Norfolk, and Rich had arranged a treasure hunt. Each clue spelled out the final destination, ‘riverbank’. He’d timed it so that we would arrive at exactly 5.23pm, which was sunset that day!

“When we arrived, there were flowers and champagne, and a tree adorned with fairy lights. And there was a box with a poem inside that he’d written… the last line of the poem said ‘now turn around and look down’, and when I did, there he was, on one knee, with a ring! I said yes straight away!”

The Style

The couple went for a classically elegant, light, bright wedding, with lots of entertainment to highlight their special moments, and so their guests could enjoy themselves throughout. Richard reveals their overall aim, “...to have fun! I wanted Gemma to get everything she wanted from the day and to be happy, and we just wanted everyone to have a nice time. I was determined we were not going to look back at our wedding with any regrets.”

Gemma was touched by the ‘no-compromises’ sentiment, “Richard said to me repeatedly throughout the planning process ‘if you want it, we’ll have it’, so anything I chose, he was just saying ‘right we’ll have it then’, but luckily for him I’m not very demanding! We had everything we wanted and more.”

Capturing the grace and charm as the two journalists’ wedding story unfolded – in a fitting documentary style – was photographer, Richard Galloway:

The Setting

With many guests travelling across the globe to attend their wedding, family and friends were important when choosing the venue, as Gemma explains, “The venue was key. We both really liked Cain Manor, it just felt right… and we liked the grounds – we knew that we would get really pretty backdrops to our photos.

“What really sold it for us was that it had a camera by the altar, so the ceremony could be live-streamed; we knew Richard’s Dad wouldn’t be able to attend, and we wanted him to be part of the day and to see it. Plus, all our friends and family could stay overnight – we all had breakfast together the next day.” Richard expands, “We were really flattered that everyone travelled from all over the world to come. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience just to have everyone in the same room at the same time!”

The Details

Capturing the details on film, were videographers Pretty in White. Creative Director, Rob Dunlop describes how they recorded the day’s grand, and intimate, moments:

Drawing on the talents of her graphic designer mum, who created the menus, place names and table signs, Gemma explains how she and Richard personalised their big day, “We named our tables after dates that Richard had taken me on during our courtship, with a photo of us on that date. We had one table called ‘Chopper’, we had a table called ‘Speedboat’, ‘Wimbledon final’, ‘Funfair’, ‘Country Retreat’, ‘Rugga’, ‘Forest Biking’, and ‘The Proposal’.”

The Invitations

Gemma and Richard chose their wedding invitations to reflect their clean, bright, classic style, opting for Strawberry Sorbet’s ‘Ella’ style (you can see a sample of this style of stationery above). Sarah Shipway from Strawberry Sorbet explains:

The Dress

The Wedding Dress Shop in Wimbledon, provided Gemma’s exquisite ‘Opal’ wedding dress, courtesy of Pronovias. She wore a low-waisted mermaid style dress, with delicate trailing tuille skirt, much to Richard’s delight, “She’d been teasing me for months about her dress and telling me it was all sorts of things…!” Gemma concurs, “I was pretending I had a really weird one-off Lady Gaga style dress, and I think he was starting to believe me!”

Hair & Makeup

As a TV presenter, Gemma’s used to looking flawless, but she knew her wedding prep was going to be extra special. “Getting ready was one of my favourite moments. I had two of my favourite makeup artists with me from work and that meant a lot to me. They know me very well and the getting ready process was lovely. My two little flower girls were the best man’s children – we tonged their hair and put some flowers in, and they loved all of that.”

The Groom

Richard discussed potential suit colours with Gemma, then chose a striking blue three-piece suit from Reiss. “Myself, my best man and my two ushers all took a day off work and went suit shopping on Bond Street.”

The Flowers

Gemma was in charge of the beautiful blossoms for the day, “I went for a scheme of roses, peonies, and gypsophila in whites and creams, and some foliage. I didn’t want anything to look too fussy, and those flowers just seemed quite simplistic and sophisticated.” Her florist, Mandy Alberry of Sonning Flowers, explains how she interpreted Gemma’s brief to achieve her perfect look:

The Toastmaster

To ensure everything ran smoothly on their big day, Richard arranged a toastmaster. “We’d done loads of prep and planning, but we didn’t want to be organising things on the day. One of our better decisions was having a toastmaster. He was amazing – he orchestrated everything and essentially ran the day so Gemma and I could just enjoy it.”

From The Toastmaster

In the weeks before their wedding, I prepared a detailed ‘running order’ that could be shared by all the service providers, thus ensuring that the day ran seamlessly.

On the day of the wedding the Toastmaster will invariably be the ‘event coordinator’ ensuring that all the component parts of the day come together when they are supposed to. Most importantly the Toastmaster will be constantly, and discreetly on hand to assist, advise and provide support to the Bride and Bridegroom, and the Bridal Party.

Brian Greenan, Toastmasters available through Alive Network

The Ceremony

Amour Harp provided the musical ambiance for the ceremony and drinks reception, performing a mix of classical, contemporary, and traditional Welsh music to cater for all the guests. “I felt like a harpist was the right mix of entertainment with subtlety… a harpist just seemed beautiful and harmonious. I thought it would be a good fit for our wedding.”

The happy couple chose Pachelbel’s Canon as Gemma’s processional accompaniment. She relives the magical moment she stepped into the ceremony room, “I was incredibly excited and I remember coming in and hearing the harp music and initially thinking that everyone was facing the wrong way, because they had all turned around to watch me enter! When I got to the end of the carpet, Richard wasn’t looking at me yet, and I could see his best man smiling and then I just started walking down the aisle – it was an amazing moment. It’s all a bit like you’re in a dream... I had a strange kind of butterfly feeling I don’t think I’ve ever felt before, and may never again, but it was very nice!”

Richard recalls waiting by the alter, “I’d agreed with my best man, Nick, that as soon as Gemma’s foot hit the aisle, he’d give me a nudge – and that’s when I looked around. My first reaction was relief that she was wearing a beautiful dress and not a Gaga creation as she’d teased! I thought she looked absolutely incredible; the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen.”

It’s all a bit like you’re in a dream... I had a strange kind of butterfly feeling I don’t think I’ve ever felt before

There was some lovely song inspiration for the rest of their ceremony:

Signing of the Registers:

• Here Comes The Sun by The Beatles
• All of Me by John Legend
• A Thousand Years by Christina Perri

Recessional:

• Everybody Loves Somebody by Coslow, Taylor and Lane
• Tea for Two by Youmans and Caesar

Get more classic ceremony music ideas…

Gemma explains their choices, “We knew that the signing of the register would be a really positive, celebratory moment, so the tracks we chose were uplifting, and the recessional music was upbeat, light and lovely!” And it seems the music influenced more than the mood on their big day too, as Richard describes, “It was a bit grey in the morning, but just after we got married, as soon as the harpist played Here Comes The Sun, the weather turned – here came the sun!”

Richard describes some of his most favourite moments, “Seeing Gemma walk down the aisle, the ceremony itself, and then after the ceremony, just mingling with everyone, them coming up to us and chatting with us, and being happy and having a good time. The magician doing the rounds at that time was awesome – the whole thing was great!”

The Reception & Wedding Breakfast

While Gemma and Richard went off to pose for the camera, they were determined their guests wouldn’t miss them too much during the drinks reception. Richard explains, “We wanted our guests to be enjoying themselves and having fun.” The harpist continued her set and close-up magician, Martin Reed, joined the celebrations, wowing the guests during the drinks and into the breakfast.

Gemma was amazed by his close-up magic, “Martin came to our top table during dinner and we loved it! So many of our friends have said ‘that magician is phenomenal’!” Richard agrees, “Yes, loads of people said how amazing he was. In terms of entertainment, he was one of the most talked-about things at the wedding.”

That magician is phenomenal!

When the toastmaster announced the end of the harpist’s performance, she was rewarded with a standing ovation, as Richard discloses, “It was rapturous… she was a little bit surprised, but she did a curtsey.” Gemma agrees, “Yes, she was brilliant! She looked visibly thrown by the applause. She absolutely deserved it.”

For the wedding breakfast, our happy couple chose pianist, Lee Mathews, to perform their perfect musical ambiance. Richard explains how they selected the right vibe, “we requested a few songs and then asked Lee to choose some that he felt appropriate, based on our recommendations.”

Former Dorchester resident Lee loved performing for their wedding breakfast...

Find more classic reception entertainment ideas here…

One of Gemma’s favourite moments was the wedding speeches. “I loved hearing Rich give his speech and having the whole room in fits of laughter at his jokes... and being really proud of my new husband. I actually really admire the way that he was so honest about how we got together... his attempts to woo me... it was funny and lovely to be reminded of how we got here.

“And I was really proud of my dad giving a speech. It was a lovely feeling to have Dad speak and then Richard follow, and for both of them to say nice things about me... it’s something that you only experience once in your lifetime!”

I loved hearing Rich give his speech … and being really proud of my new husband.

The Cake

Nut-allergy sufferer Gemma hunted far and wide for a cake designer to create their allergy-friendly wedding cake. “My allergy is life-threatening, and we have so many different friends and family with different dietary needs. It was a struggle to find a cake-maker that would take us on! We wanted a cake where each tier met a different dietary requirement, and we had an entirely separate wedding cake for vegan guests – though, in the end, we only had one vegan guest, so she had plenty of it! Thankfully we found Vanessa at Forever Cakes who was brilliant and up for the challenge.”

The Evening Party

A few weeks before their wedding day, Gemma and Richard asked their party band, The Colts, to learn a new song and perform it live for their first dance. Reluctant shape-thrower Richard was slightly anxious about their big dancefloor moment.

“I was more nervous about the first dance than the wedding speeches. I’m not a natural dancer and don’t ever dance, so that was filling me with dread! We chose Accidentally in Love, by Counting Crows – it’s quite an upbeat song that I could muddle through without any kind of Strictly-style routine! But I had a last-minute panic. A few days before the wedding, we employed an instructor who taught us a French Jive routine. I was surprised at how complex it was!”

Gemma was pretty impressed with Richard’s moves during the intensive one-hour session, “In the first 20 minutes he had picked it up and I was thinking ‘I can’t do this!’ We had to really practice so we would look less uncomfortable on the dancefloor!”

Richard concedes, “There’s nothing worse than dancing with intense concentration painted all over your face, like you’re trying to remember something! We just wanted a dance that wasn’t too showy, but wasn’t bog-standard either.”

Richard’s favourite bit? “When it was time for everyone else to join in!”

Check out these classic evening party ideas…

The Band

The happy couple opted for a varied musical style for their evening party, as Gemma details, “We chose a mix of pop and dance and Motown, going right back to ‘60s hits and a bit of rock and roll too.”

You know you’ve booked a good band when the crowd starts chanting ‘10 more songs!’ after their finale!

The Colts were only too happy to help create one of Gemma’s favourite musical moments, “My 3-year-old nephew, Morgan, had been looking forward to dancing to Bruno Mars’ Uptown Funk all night.”

Richard recalls, “He was dancing to every song, and he was literally falling asleep on the dancefloor, but he wouldn’t go to bed until he’d heard that track.” The band moved it forward in their set and Morgan’s fave song brought him back from the land of nod. “I didn’t think he was going to be able to stay awake much longer,” admits Gemma. “But he loved it and he danced away to it, which was so lovely!”

The crowd really enjoyed The Colts’ performance. “We loved the way The Colts played our requested favourite songs and did such a great job of keeping our guests on the dancefloor,” said Richard. “You know you’ve booked a good band when the crowd starts chanting ‘10 more songs!’ after their finale!”

What We Learned

Teamwork, Planning and Delegation…

Richard: “Work together in the prep. Make decisions together.”

“Think about who is going to make sure the day moves along really smoothly, because you don’t want that to be yourself. Make sure you’ve got a really good wedding manager or I’d highly recommend getting a toastmaster – it was the best money we spent. He ran the whole thing for us.”

Take It All In and Enjoy…

Gemma: “Just enjoy the day and cherish every moment. There were times when I would just stop and savour the moment, and look around and think ‘this is really happening!’. Enjoy it – I did!”

The Magic Makers

Photographer Richard Galloway Photography, Surrey | Videographer Pretty In White: Wedding Films, Surrey and London | Bride’s attire Dress: Opal by Pronovias via The Wedding Dress Shop, Wimbledon, London | Groom’s attire Three-piece suit: Reiss, London | Hair and beauty Makeup by Liz, London | Ruth McGinty Higgins, London | Flowers and table décor Sonning Flowers, Reading, Berkshire | Wedding cake design Forever Cakes, Alton, East Hampshire | Stationery Strawberry Sorbet, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire | Venue Cain Manor, Headley Down, Surrey | Music, atmosphere and vibes of love and fun Alive Network, UK-wide | Harpist, Amour Harp – the ceremony and drinks reception | Magician, Martin Reed – the drinks reception and wedding breakfast | Pianist, Lee Mathews – the wedding breakfast | Band, The Colts – the evening party