Hold your wedding bash at Asda

MOVE over Bridezilla, meet Bridechilla. She is the new type of bride who doesn’t care about the tissue lining on the Save The Date envelopes and won’t have a complete breakdown if the tuna canapés aren’t available for her pre-wedding bridesmaid brunch. Bridechilla — apparently! — is so over the big dress, the £££ spent on a fancy reception, the exotic location and the post party after party. In America, it is becoming an increasing trend to downsize weddings. Brides have been encouraged by a rash of new websites and blogs devoted to keeping costs down on their big day. It’s not ‘go big or go home’ any more. Small but perfectly formed is also good. And not before time. American brides spend an average of £26,000 on their weddings, which is slightly under the £30,000 splurge of their UK counterparts. I’m not sure if I entirely believe this new bridal austerity, but it must be time for the wedding racket and attendant racketeers to dial down the excess. Look at Lee, 42, and Gill Carter, 55, who held their wedding reception in the Asda store in Rawtenstall, Lancashire. They first met there when Lee stood up

to offer Gill his seat in the crowded Asda cafe. The supermarket chain said that the couple, who go to the store most days, could not afford an expensive party, so they offered to host one for them. ‘They are such a lovely couple,’ they said, and went...