NOTES ON
July 31st, 1971,
our wedding at Bedford church in Leigh, Lancashire
http://comp.uark.edu/~dsears/photos/1971-7-31
We
were married on July 31st, 1971, in a red brick building which was
the church close to Hazel’s home.
People put on nice clothes.
Hazel looked gorgeous. Family members
were nice to each other. A large number
of my relatives made the trip from Kent.
The service was King James I’s, with hymns chosen with the help of the
vicar, avoiding Hazel’s favorites which the vicar thought inappropriate.
We
had met with the vicar a few days before, to get inspiration and advice. A few words on contraceptives, he favored
the Dutch cap, and the need to forgive extramarital affairs, especially
mine. I liked Mr. Lowe. On the day, my brother and I stayed with
Aunty Edith and Uncle Bob, lest we saw the bride. I soaked in the bath for the longest time, pondering on the
naturalness of the whole thing. Mother
noticed the price label on the soles of my shoes; Dad was his usual smiling
quiet self. The reception was in a
well-known Leigh restaurant, Waterfields. We presented our mothers’ with
bouquets. They cried.
We
slept that night in an expensive room at the Midland Hotel on Piccadilly Square
in Manchester, and in the morning we took the train to St. Ives. We treated ourselves to a meal on the train.