Having legally married in Las Vegas in May 2022, Catherine Healy and Tom Line continued the theme at their UK wedding seven months later on December 17.
How did you meet?
We met on an app called Happen, which shows you people who crossed within X distance of you, the idea being that you’d find people who were into similar things as you.
I lived in Norwich at the time and Tom was there for work. A week or so later after speaking non-stop, I went to London and we went to see Wicked on the West End after Tom took me to the grottiest nightclub he knew. The rest is history.
Tell us about the proposal.
There wasn’t one! I just said one day: "Shall we get married?" and Tom said: "OK then". Before that he really enjoyed making me as embarrassed as possible by faking a proposal at all sorts of moments, such as nights out and on visits to theme parks.
What was the theme for the day?
I wish I could say we had a theme, but in the end it was just a random assortment of things we like. Because we’d been married in Vegas by an Elvis impersonator, we decided to have another Elvis impersonator conduct the ceremony in the UK, too.
I finished my PhD in medieval history last year, so we had a few medieval bits dotted around. My friend is an amazing designer and designed our wedding stationery. She let me go as wacky as I wanted with the medieval theme.
We also organised a wedding favour each: Tom’s was rock with our names throughout, and mine was coasters with images from medieval manuscripts.
What venue did you choose and why did you choose it?
I chose Henham Barns in Beccles. I say ‘I’ because the first time Tom saw it was the day before the wedding. I’d seen a few venues virtually/in person but hadn’t seen one I really liked. The team at Henham Barns agreed to let me do a virtual viewing as I wasn’t living in Suffolk at the time and I knew straight away that I loved it. My sister came with me to have a look and it just felt perfect.
How did you know you’d found ‘the’ dress?
I was probably the least prepared bride you can imagine when it came to the dress. I was a bit overwhelmed at the thought of going to a bridal shop and trying on lots of beautiful but very similar dresses.
Instead, three months before the wedding, I went to The Suffolk Wedding Dress Exchange, where there are a range of second-hand and sample dresses. In advance, I picked ten in my size from their website to try on. On the day, once we had narrowed down a style I liked, Sarah Paddon, the managing director, was able to suggest some other similar dresses.
I ended up with the Rosa Clara ‘Hayden’ dress. It was beautiful but made for summer, so Sarah introduced me to her seamstress Stephanie who added some sleeves for me. It was much more ‘bridal’ in the end than I thought I’d go for, but I’m glad I did.
Who were the bridesmaids and what did they wear?
My bridesmaids were my sister and three of my closest friends, all of whom I’ve known since secondary school. They wore green off-the-shoulder dresses.
Where did you find your suits?
The suits were all from Moss Bros.
Tell us about your floral arrangements.
Luckily, I have a close family friend who is a florist so she took care of this for me, which was amazing. I was clueless; I had no idea what colour flowers I wanted or what type, but she was able to suggest it all for me and lay it out.
My mum got hold of 20 or so mini Christmas trees to make the barn feel festive and another florist friend sourced some poinsettias for the tables, which looked lovely. At the end of the night, I made the guests all take a plant or tree as they were leaving.
How did you feel as you walked down the aisle?
I was completely fine about the thought of walking down the aisle until I arrived at the venue. I had a slight wobble and my bridesmaids made me walk up and down the barn a bit to calm down, then I went for it and I just felt happy. It was so nice to see everyone I loved there.
How did you make the ceremony personal to you?
Because we were already legally married, I actually wrote the script for the ceremony myself. I took a lot of what our Vegas Elvis said and gave it to our Suffolk Elvis to read. It was a really nice way of re-enacting our Vegas experience with our friends and family.
Two friends also gave readings, which was lovely: one from The Little Prince and the other read a poem by John Cooper Clarke, in the accent.
What was the most challenging aspect of planning this wedding?
I am a really big people pleaser, so I really stressed myself out worrying about what everyone would make of the day and if they’d enjoy it. Ultimately, I should have just said: "Screw it, it’s my day!"
What song did you choose for your first dance, and why?
We chose December 1963 by Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons. Tom loves them, so we’ve always said that would be our first dance.
What did you choose for your entertainment?
We had a magician, who we saw at a friend’s wedding and I booked him the next day. His tricks were amazing and all the guests kept coming up to us to say how good he was.
We had a DJ for the evening, but Elvis also did an (unexpected) costume change and came back for a second set.
Tell us about your wedding cake.
One of my bridesmaids actually made it for us. She was a proper hero and I don’t think either of us realised what a big job it would be when she agreed. Everyone said the cake was amazing.
Was there anything you wish you’d known before?
That when people say weddings are expensive, they aren’t just saying it. Even if you think you’ve gone for reasonably priced suppliers, things really add up.
Where did you go on honeymoon?
We went to Japan. We went in March 2023, so a few months after the wedding. We wanted a bit of a break inbetween, so we had time to plan. We hopped around on the bullet train and went to Tokyo, Mt Fuju, Kyoto, Nara and Osaka.
Do you have any advice for couples in the planning stages?
Don’t listen to anyone else and do what works for you. Planning a wedding is probably the most stressful thing you will ever do (for me, more stressful than buying a house or finishing a PhD), so it has to all be worth it in the end. If you want a carousel, go for it. If you want to elope just the two of you, do it.
Steal their style:
Venue: Henham Park
Photography: Adam Prescott Wedding Photography
Dress: The Suffolk Wedding Dress Exchange
Flowers: Luan Brame at Flower Rush and Suffolk Blooms
Catering: Trios Catering
Magician: Lee Smith Magic
Stationery: Studio Elle
Wedding favours: The Hum From The Hill via Etsy
