No-rush Dundee pair finally tie knot in Oz 26 years later

IF you’re pretty much sorted and everything’s ticking along nicely, there’s really no reason to rush things, is there?

That certainly seems to be the attitude of a beautifully chilled Dundee couple who have just tied the knot beneath the blazing Australian sun in the shadow of Sydney Harbour Bridge — because it took them more than 20 years to get round to it!

There’s no doubt that as a couple, Pam McEwan and Stewart Findlay have something special, and while they don’t set out to be unconventional, they seem to manage it effortlessly.

This is further evidenced by one quirky element to their big day — the fact the wedding party consisted of only four people.

Pam, a customer services executive, was a young barmaid at the long-gone Chambers at the bottom of Castle Street when she first met Stewart, now 56 and working at Michelin.

“He’d come into Chambers quite a lot and while he’s a lot quieter than me, we’d chat away,” said Pam, 55.

“It was 1990 when we met and Chambers was a place all the local bands would play.

“Stewart stayed out by Perth Road and when I was invited to a friend’s wedding, I asked him if he’d like to come along.

“I really didn’t know how it was going to work out because, as I say, he’s the quiet type and I’m much more outgoing.

“As it happened, we had a great night and that was it — we became a couple.”

Pam picked up on the fact that Stewart’s pretty relaxed early on.

“I think ‘laid back’ is the perfect way to describe him,” she said.

“I had a flat in Castle Street when we started dating and he didn’t move in for three years.”

Regardless, they knew they were just meant for each other and moved on up to Whitfield where they settled into a loving family as Taylor came along 22 years ago, followed by Paul four years later.

“Getting married was technically on the cards for a long time,” said Pam.

“But life just sort of got in the way — kids, schools, things needing done in the house, all that sort of thing.”

Three years ago, Taylor went out to Australia to seek her fortune and is currently working for a bank in Sydney and living in the Randwick area of the city, while Paul’s now 18 and a DJ.

For Taylor, popping home was never going to be easy, so she didn’t get back to Dundee until just before Christmas.

And that’s when Pam and Stewart thought, why not?

“We were travelling back to Australia with Taylor for a holiday with Paul and thought it would also be the perfect opportunity to get married when we were there,” said Pam.

And they told barely a soul — not even Pam’s folks, Betty and Alex.

“Taylor found a celebrant to perform the wedding and we organised all the relevant documentation,” said Pam.

“We’d never been there before and anyway, I didn’t want a big wedding, so it was just us, the kids and the celebrant.

“It took place on a little grassy area in the Kirribilli area. The boys were in their suits, I was in a dress from ASOS and when it was over we all went for a drink at the Sydney Opera Bar, then for an Italian.

“It was perfect — the setting, the beautiful day, the sunglasses on, the view across the bay.

“It’s taken us 26 years to get there but we got there.”

A beautiful story, a brilliant couple, a happy day.