Oxfordshire, the place to marry Oxfordshire 2019 | Page 25

F E S T I VA L
CEREMONIES
When guests have travelled a long way to celebrate with you, and
when you have friends and family aged from 3 to 93 to entertain,
many couples choose to hold a festival-style celebration, lasting late
into the night or even spanning a whole weekend.
Your legal ceremony can take place in one of
our local registration offices and be followed by
a ceremony to celebrate your marriage or civil
partnership conducted by one of our experienced
celebrants in the beautiful Oxfordshire
countryside – maybe in a farmer’s field, or in the
woods, or by a river. Tea and cake always goes down well, especially if
the cake is homemade and the tea is served from
vintage china. Not forgetting drinks – craft beer on
tap from one of Oxfordshire’s micro-breweries is
one possibility, but you could also source some
of the county’s excellent locally produced wine or
fruit juices.
Guests can be seated on hay bales or vintage
deckchairs while you exchange your vows and
promises in the open air, and your gathering can
be personalised with handmade bunting or wild-
flower and foliage garlands. Marquees or festival
tents can provide the perfect place to relax during
the festivities, as well as shelter from the sun and
rain. Children love an outdoor celebration of any kind,
but could be easily kept entertained with some
old-fashioned games, like rounders, quoits or
croquet, or giant Jenga or Connect 4. Children
and adults alike will enjoy the relaxed vibe that
having live music can bring to your day, and what
could be better than having your first dance to
your favourite music played by your favourite
local band?
Food and drink are a vital component of any
successful celebration, and there are plenty of
options to choose from. A traditional hog roast is
always popular, but why not consider street-style
food, catering for all tastes from vegetarian or
vegan to the exotic flavours of Lebanese, Indian
or Thai cuisines? Or you could even hire in a fish
and chip van or an ice cream van for a traditional
seaside atmosphere.
www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/registration
Some couples choose to end the day under the
stars around a camp fire, with the chill kept at bay
with cosy blankets, marshmallows and toasting
forks in hand. Others provide bell tents, yurts or
tipis for their guests to stay the night, enjoying the
tranquillity of the countryside, ready for the party
to start again at breakfast time!
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