Real Weddings from Your South Wales Wedding

A Royal Wedding

Jessica and Adam met at the University of Reading, in the student union nightclub and it was love at first sight. Within a week of dating, they became official, and they knew they'd found their soulmate. The bond between this couple grew quickly and the 'L-word' was used within a few weeks.

Love At First Swipe

Like many of us in this modern world, Angharad and Lewis met online through a dating app. Angharad recalls, "As I'm a teacher, I thought I would add a humorous part to my bio and said that there were perks
to dating a teacher, one of those being unlimited milk and cookies.

Love At First Sight

Emma and James met online and knew straight away that they had a lot in common. Their instant connection formed a genuine bond where they could talk about anything without fear of judgment – a very strong building block for any successful marriage.

Gothic Romance

Jessica and Edward met via the dating app Bumble. "Edward had an incredible photo of himself dressed as a warrior monk, which I thought was a refreshing change from photos of sports cars or tigers," says Jessica. "I was really late for our first date because my bus broke down on the way. Edward started to worry that I might not turn up, but I ran in the door of the café, and we instantly hit it off."

Monochrome Magic

Charlotte and Adam met when they were teenagers working at their local golf club. "Adam likes to think it was his singing that got me to say yes to a date, but it really wasn't," says Charlotte. "After more than a decade together, Adam proposed in 2022 during a holiday to my family's villa in Spain.

Love At First Sight

Nia and Carwyn met online during the pandemic. "Our story was a bit of a whirlwind, from talking online and meeting families on our second and third dates to Carwyn moving in after a month and a half, but we knew we were meant to be," says Nia. "By the time we had our first date, Carwyn had already proposed over messenger three times!

Step Into Spring

Aisling and Liam met during their first week at dance school. "Liam was in his first year of the course and I was doing the foundation year," says Aisling. "We met at a house party and were friends for about eight months before starting a relationship."

Fun In The Sun

Ellie and Ricky met in 2012 at Broad Haven Beach in Haverfordwest. "He was a popular boy who I thought was attractive, but nothing ever happened as he was too old for me at the time," says Ellie. "Fast forward to 2014, when he took a fancy to me dressed up as a bobsleigher and we've been together ever since."

You Make My Heart Skip A Beat

Kath and Dan met through St John Ambulance Cymru. "Dan was my daughter's cadet offi cer and when he found out that I was a member years ago, he encouraged me to come back as a parent helper, which I did," says Kath. "One year my son had the honour of carrying the St John Ambulance Badger standard in a Remembrance Parade. As a proud mam, I put the photo on social media, saying, 'Proud mam seeing my boy carrying this fl ag this morning'. Dan saw the post and quickly sent me a private message saying, 'It's called a standard,' and that's how our friendship somehow started. The thing that attracted us to each other was how similar we both are; we enjoy a bit of banter and we just bounce off each other. We constantly laugh and joke!"

Monochrome Magic

Harriet and David met through mutual friends. "We lived in neighbouring villages and when a friend shared our numbers, we started texting," says Harriet. "I had absolutely no interest in David to begin with, then he convinced me to go on a date with him, to which I reluctantly agreed. He made me laugh like no one has before and that was it! We've been inseparable ever since! We definitely believed we were each other's other half and it's still the same nine years later!"

Classic Elegance

Lauren and Rob met through work in 2015. "I thought he was really charming and we got on really well," says Lauren. "Our relationship grew and in 2023, Rob proposed while we were in Cardiff. We went back to the fi rst hotel that we stayed in together and I had no idea that he was going to pop the question. It caught me by complete surprise."

Summer Loving

Megan and Simon met in their third year of university. "I was running a social for some of the students and a mutual friend introduced us," says Megan. "Simon immediately caught my eye, and the three of us ended up getting dinner before the social started. We started out as just friends, but there was a clear connection there from the beginning; we had the same sense of humour, enjoyed the same movies, were both close with our families and loved dogs. A few months later, we had our fi rst offi cial date on Valentine's Day and the rest is history."

Meant To Be

Holly and Cory met while working at a nightclub when they were 18 and 19. "We were completely lost in the world, not knowing what we wanted to do in life," says Holly. "We'd have never thought that 12 years later we'd have a house, be married and have two children!"Cory proposed during a break away. "I had planned a trip to New York as a surprise for his 30th birthday," shares the bride. "We went to Central Park at Thanksgiving, which was full of people and there wasn't an inch of it without a tourist with a camera. We walked for hours while Cory tried to fi nd the right place for us. Finally, we found a place called the Cop Cot. Sitting there, we decided to say what we were thankful for, in true American tradition. We discussed the journey we'd been on as a couple, our two beautiful children and just as we were about to leave, Cory explained he had one more question before we left. New York will forever be our special place."

Festival of Love

Rob caught Saz's eye while she was out at a bar with her friends. "We exchanged a few words and ended up matching on Tinder a couple of months later," says Saz. "We bonded over our love of festivals, music and rugby. We are both very outdoorsy people. We go hiking and camping quite a lot and have attended lots of festivals and concerts together.

Fall In Love With You

Haley and Kristian met while Haley was working at a pub in Neath. "I became friends with a regular called Ryan," says Haley. "I didn't know at the time that Ryan had a brother, so when Ryan walked into the bar one day and I asked him about his trip away to Butlins and he told me he'd just returned from Egypt with his girlfriend, I was confused! Later on, Ryan came in again and was dressed in a different outfi t! It turned out Ryan and Kristian are brothers and looked exactly the same to me. It was then that Ryan introduced me to Kristian, and well, that was when our story began. We were both in relationships, so we just enjoyed being friends. Kristian was so nice to me and he became my best friend.

A Never-Ending Love

Bethan and Sam met through mutual friends. "We messaged each other for a few months and eventually went on a date," says Bethan. "We went to Winter Wonderland in Cardiff and instantly clicked with each other. After we met, Sam went back to his local pub and met up with his friends, and when they asked how it went, his response was, 'I'm going to marry her.' We went on several dates after this; however, lockdown then happened in March and we made the decision to move in together rather than not see each other."

Where The Wildflowers Grow

Rachael and Sam met through social media. "Sam had not been in New Zealand long and we instantly struck up a friendship," says Rachael. "We chatted for a few months before we finally organised a date. It was truly love at first sight. All though our connection was instant, our relationship was a slow burn, as I have two daughters who were six and ten at the time. I had to make sure Sam was a keeper before he met Ava and Amelia, but he had me at hello, and his morals, ethics and loyalty would last me a lifetime."

At One With Nature

Beth and Alex met on a dating website. "We have both been married before and gone through difficult separations and divorces," says Beth. "Alex was incredibly charming and to this day, I still call him my Charming Mr Alex. We had a lot in common, as we both love the outdoors and enjoy walking, paddleboarding, the beach and coastal areas. Our love for life was what really shone through. We had an immediate connection and I know it may sound cheesy, but I know that we were meant to meet. He is what I had been waiting for my entire life! He treated me like an absolute lady from the start and spoilt me rotten in every way and still does. He completely swept me off my feet and the first year was a total dream come true. It is incredible to meet someone who respects you so much for who you are and who will love you unconditionally. I feel so lucky to have met Alex and to now have the family that I do with him."

Love Is In The Air

Verity and Ed met for coffee and instantly hit off. "I thought Ed was very handsome with a lovely, warm personality," says Verity. "In the first month or so, we were only able to meet up on weekdays as Ed was working night shifts. When Ed had a day off in the week, he would make and bring lunch to my workplace."

Making Waves

Sarah and James met at a bar in 2015. "I'd decided to have a spontaneous drink with one of my good friends, Jess, after work," says Sarah. "It's fair to say that Jess had a few too many to drink by the time we met James. I was ordering drinks and when I turned around, I saw an overly sociable Jess had started chatting with James' friends. One of his friends pointed James out to me and asked if I was single. I'd sworn off men at that point and Jess was engaged, but we continued to chat and eventually I got talking to James. I could tell he was a very kind, interesting and intelligent soul and we got on well immediately."