The Beginning: A Winter Wedding

We got married on December 23,2005. We used⁣ to‌ close the restaurant in January so we were⁢ kind of suiting ourselves ⁤that we could go⁤ away on a nice honeymoon after the wedding for about six weeks to Australia and New Zealand.

We​ got married in the Nuremore Hotel in Carrickmacross in Monaghan, an excellent hotel, which has since closed down. There was a very, very good chef there at the time called Raymond McArdle. He ⁣was a friend of mine, and I have a lot of respect for him, and he was at least part​ of the reason⁣ we chose that hotel.

A Local Affair: Ceremony ​and Roots

We had the ceremony in Boho, co. Fermanagh, in what was Imelda’s local church. Boho is literally 20 minutes from where I grew up. I always joke that I shopped local for food and for love.

A Grand Celebration: Guests and Family

We had a big enough wedding of around 300 guests. I have a big family; I’m one of nine children, and Imelda, though she’s an only child herself, has a large ⁣extended ⁤family. And, you no,‌ we had invited lots of our friends and of course, our staff at the restaurant. I was ​teaching in Fermanagh College as well at the time so I had a lot of work colleagues there. We also had people like Mary Kennedy and Marty⁤ Whelan, who we’d grown close to⁢ over the years, at the wedding.

Imelda’s⁣ Touch: planning and Details

For the wedding organisation, I have⁤ to give a lot of credit to ⁢Imelda. She has a great attention to detail, but likes ‍things done nice and simply, with no fuss. She handwrote all the ​wedding invites and created the mass booklets herself.

The Bride ⁢and Bridal Party

She got her dress locally, ⁤in Enniskillen.