Your Cheshire and Merseyside Wedding - May/June 2023 (Issue 69)

The dream team Ashley and Craig’s love for Everton FC brought them together Images courtesy of Laura Wade Photography Ashley and Craig are both avid Everton FC supporters and followed one another on Twitter. They’d also bumped into each other a few times at away day matches and became good friends. Football started the conversation between them but it wasn’t long before this turned into exchanged numbers and texting. They went on their first date late in 2014, and the rest as they say is history! “Everything just clicked into place, we were good friends, had similar personalities and enjoyed being around one another,” Craig says. Craig proposed after four-and-a-half years together, in front of the Magic Kingdom Castle, Florida. He’d planned to pop the question before the fireworks, which didn’t quite turn out as he’d hoped when they got stuck on a broken-down monorail and missed the photographers. Ashley didn’t suspect a thing, while Craig frantically tried to think of a plan B. Luckily, the photographers returned after the display and the couple got in line to have their picture taken, which Ashley expected would be just like any other. When they reached the front though, Craig was down on one knee. “The crowd cheered and celebrated with us, which made it so magical, especially as it was at Disney,” Ashley remembers. From the moment they started planning, they both knew they wanted a UK winter wedding. Peckforton Castle has always been a wedding venue Ashley dreamed of, but following their engagement at the Disney Castle, it seemed even more appropriate. “Everything about the venue from the grounds to the low-lighting and original features were exactly what we wanted. We decided to have a three-year engagement, so when we looked at dates for 2022, 30th December fell perfectly,” Ashley explains. Join us as the bride tells us all about the big day from preparations to celebrations... 33 REAL WEDDINGS

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