'From the lowest of lows to the highest of highs' - Whitchurch couple win dream wedding in Shropshire Star competition
“We’ve gone from the lowest of lows to the highest of highs.”
Those were the words of Daniel Humphries, who along with fiancee Siobhan Russell won Shropshire Star’s Win Your Dream Wedding competition just a day after saying goodbye to his father.
The couple from Whitchurch were overcome with emotion after a tough couple of days, sealing their win with a kiss surrounded by their friends and family in a cheering room at Hawkstone Park.
Daniel’s father Alfie passed away after suffering from a terminal illness, and the pair almost didn’t attend the contest after his funeral the day before.
Daniel and Siobhan can now look forward to returning to the venue to tie the knot next year after scooping the £14,000 package which includes their ceremony and reception, a red carpet welcome and drinks, wedding breakfast, evening buffet and overnight accommodation in the Superior Deluxe suite.
Other goodies include photography from White Apple Photography, wedding rings from Woodings & Co, bridal wear from Heavenly Wedding Belles, entertainment from Solid Gold/Jackflash Fireworks, flowers from Flores Diem, decor from My Wedding Decor, stationery from Evelyn Elliot, a wedding cake from Toyah Emily, a balloon arch from SHE Events/SHE Lash, suit hire from Dapper Dan, bridal hair from Hayley Hamilton and bridal make-up from SJM Beauty.
The contest was fought in good spirits between the finalists.
The couples and their families enjoyed a drinks reception and a bite to eat as they settled in before MC Carl Jones kicked off proceedings with a game of Mr & Mrs.
The next game involved setting a wedding table in three minutes to the tune of Benny Hill. Couples had a varying degree of success, with some elegant napkin placement and perfect spacing work offset by some tables leaving guests with just a fork and a tiny plate to eat their dinner.
Cake decorating was also part of the contest, which involved the gents putting on ponchos and blindfolds while their partners gave instructions to try and create the most aesthetically pleasing sponge tower.
And the penultimate challenge involved the couples making wedding dresses out of toilet paper in five minutes.
The final, most poignant task of the evening, came as the couples bravely spoke about what getting married means to them. All five couples were fantastic, but Siobhan Russell had the room in tears as she spoke about her fiance Daniel’s father.
She said: “We’ve been together 17 years and had two children together. Getting married means so much to us. His dad was diagnosed with a terminal illness and he would have loved to have seen his son get married. Unfortunately he passed away 12 days ago. He knew we were doing this competition and he knew we were in the final.
“We said goodbye to him yesterday and we almost didn’t come tonight, but we wanted to be here in his memory. We just wanted to try our best for him and make him proud.”
