Celebrant wedding ceremonies belong at the heart of weddings for people wanting their marriage to be personalised. That’s the core truth. Couples planning luxury event weekend weddings, elegant country house parties, stylish little intimate hotel gatherings and quintessentially English garden marquee marriages are choosing a celebrant ceremony. Increasing numbers of statement venues and high-end wedding planners are adding to the wedding vision by recommending celebrants instead of defaulting the ceremony to a Registrar.
Worried about what a celebrant wedding ceremony says about you and whether you fit the mould? Spoiler – the mould is broken. Here’s a look at the biggest misconceptions about people who choose a personalised celebrant wedding.
They are extroverts and love being the centre of attention
The biggest myth about celebrant ceremonies is that they mean couples do the talking and have to learn/speak lots of bits. Not true. Yes, we can create space for you to do personalised wedding vows. Yes, you can read poetry to each other. But in reality, celebrant wedding ceremonies are perfect for people who don’t like to be the centre of attention.
It’s the celebrant who does most of the talking. About you. At you. For your guests. And we can structure the ceremony so that you don’t feel like two zoo exhibits on a stage having your every move observed.
They are quirky or alternative
Celebrants aren’t an audacious choice. Data wise, from the hundreds of couples I’ve spoken to at wedding events and fairs in the last few years, getting married in a place of worship is more radical in terms of numbers; surprisingly few.
Registry office or Registrar at your venue is still the vanilla choice, but people don’t choose celebrants because of they think we are the only option for their lifestyle. It’s simply a matter of wanting to celebrate your love story in a way that’s meaningful to you and that is not limited to people that your gran would refer to as ‘quirky’.
They aren’t religious
Religion doesn’t make it easy to combine celebrating belief systems under one consecrated roof during a marriage celebration. But many people come from two different religious backgrounds or practices and live happily side by side.
Independent celebrant wedding ceremonies like mine make it very possible to marry, with reference to your religion or cultural background (Humanists are slightly different).
I can’t perform religious rituals in the same way as a Hindu priest or Church of England vicar, but I am happy to read scriptures and blessings that don’t require an ordained person. This year for example, I’ve read Sikh scripture in Punjabi, done a handfasting with a Tibetan Khata, read Christian prayers, and poetry by the Sufi mystic Rumi.
They aren’t legally married and don’t want to be
Yes, some couples have a celebrant commitment ceremony and don’t get legally married before or after. But, not wanting to be legally married isn’t the main reason people choose my celebrant wedding ceremonies.
Not one single one of my previous couples isn’t legally married as of August 2025. They all visit the Registry Office and get their legal documentation signed. Couples choosing a celebrant wedding ceremony usually go to do the paperwork within the two weeks before. But some do it a year before, or the day before. I’ve had three couples in 2025 do it on the same day.
They are having a ‘fake wedding’ to make up for you not being at the legal signing
“Of course, this is their fake wedding. They got married in [insert your hometown] Registry Office last week but nobody was invited” Guaranteed, I will overhear this at weddings this year.
No, babes, the only person who refers to their wedding as fake is YOU. I don’t have a single couple in four years of bookings that don’t treat their wedding day with my ceremony as their wedding anniversary. There is nothing fake about it. Everything about a celebrant wedding ceremony is real and powerful and creates something lasting.
And yeah, you weren’t invited, because they only had two witnesses, because that’s how simple the ten-minute legal bit has to be. And it’s a bit boring. Ask anybody choosing a celebrant, it’s not what they want to remember their wedding day as.
The truth
As mentioned right at the start, the truth is that if you are a couple who wants to celebrate their actual love story, their own truth, then choose a celebrant wedding ceremony. It’s that simple. Personalise everything. Find out more about how we can create your personalised wedding ceremony.
These images
The images in this piece are from a styled wedding shoot at Pennard House in Somerset. Organised by Wild Cherry Content and photographed by Lucy LLoyd-Jones and Isla Elodie. A full list of contributors is below.
Content: @wildcherrycontent
Photographers: @islaelodieweddings | @lucylloyd_jones
Venue: @pennardhouse
Stylist Coordinator: @knotandcouk
Florist: @brambleandwild
Large blooms: @grandeurblooms
Dried flowers: @dorsetdriedflowers
Models: @itsjessjune | @chrislondonmodel | @gailligan_island | @capturingsenses.photography
Hair Queen + MUA: @lbmakeupandhair | @ewairacka_mua
Fashion: @minsterbridal_boutique | @ragtags.blandford | @annelouiseboutique | @rebeccaannedesigns | @threadsoflovex | @rwweddings | @ellanora_london | @rwweddings
Talent: @lauraseymourviolin | @shalana.serafina.weddings | @foxypeachillustrations | @the_full_stop_celebrant
Entertainment: @mobilephotoboothuk | @extreme_effects_uk
Edibles: @lydiakraitmancakes | @thegorgebakehouse | @tipsymoovan
Fizz: @oatleyvineyard
Car: @lilandbluevintagecarhire
Stationery: @mirabellemakery
