Pair wed as man and wife will renew vows as a same-sex couple

A COUPLE who married as man and wife are to renew their vows as a same-sex couple.

Denise Taylor and Kristiana, who once went by the name Stephen, will walk down the aisle again 21 years after first getting married.

But this time both will be wearing dresses after the husband underwent a sex change.

The couple first renewed their vows in 2012 after more than 15 years of marriage.

But three days later Mr Taylor, a former Royal Navy sailor, told his wife he wanted a sex change.

The pair, who live in Sittingbourne, Kent, with their 14-year-old son, also called Stephen, have been together since 1996.

Kristiana, 49, now a radiographer at Tunbridge Wells Hospital, said: “We’re renewing our vows on August 17 and both get to wear the dress this time.

“It’s a blessing and a celebration of the 60-odd people that are invited, saying thank you for the support as we’re so thankful.

“Something that could have torn us apart actually brought us together.” Denise, a midwife at Medway Maritime Hospital, added: “I had my suspicions for quite some time and every time I’d try to approach the subject we’d have a full-blown argument and she’d storm out.

“I was anxious, thinking what was going on. It was a relief more than anything.

“It made me better to know I hadn’t physically been sharing her with someone else but actually someone that was trapped inside and was trying to get out.

“The way I saw it was that the inside’s not changing – and that’s what I married – so the outside didn’t make much difference.”

Kristiana’s journey from male to female has taken five years of hormones, GP visits and psychologist appointments.

She also had laser, speech and gender therapy before undergoing gender reassignment surgery in 2016.

Kristiana added: “We’re just a normal family… I very quickly became mum and Denise is mummy.” Denise and Kristiana Taylor are set to renew their vows as wife and wife after Kristiana, right, had a sex change