A lockdown wedding for lifelong lovers
Bride battling rare illness gets special licence
ABRIDE was granted a special lockdown licence to marry her lifelong sweetheart on her 50th birthday as she battles a rare and life-limiting neurological condition.
Rossendale couple Charlotte Drake and Iain Belsham first met in 1995 when they both worked at a packaging company in Norfolk and fell madly in love.
At the time, Iain was married, but he knew in Charlotte he had found the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with and she felt the same.
They became friends on Facebook, and 20 years later they met again after Iain sent his condolences when Charlotte’s beloved greyhound Jet died.
Iain, 55, said: “In February 2015 we started talking to each other and we agreed to meet up. I just knew we had to be together; I knew I wanted to be with Charlotte for the rest of my life.”
After putting in a special request for a marriage licence, with a supporting letter from Charlotte’s doctor, the Waterfoot couple got approval and, two weeks later on January 20, Charlotte’s 50th birthday, the ceremony was held at Burnley Register Office with just six people allowed to attend, including the bride and groom.
Now unable to speak, Charlotte’s vows were prerecorded onto an iPad so that she could say them at the ceremony.
Iain said: “We know that time is short, but we are being positive. We want to be strong and we want to be there for each other. Getting married was what we always wanted to do.”
The special ceremony was attended by Charlotte’s mum Ruth, her partner Tony, photographer Liz Hall from Liz Henson Photography, and videographer Daniel Buckley of P4otos who live streamed the wedding to family and friends unable to attend.
When they started dating in 2015, Charlotte was working as a deputy store manager at Aldi in Norfolk. Two years prior, she had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s, but eventually it became impossible for her to work,
Iain said: “I could see her health was deteriorating and as her dad and stepmum lived in Huddersfield and her mum was in Todmorden, we decided it would be easier for them to see her if we moved nearer so we sold up and bought a house in Waterfoot.”
Iain got a supervisory job at K2 Storage in Padiham, however in November 2018 her diagnosis was changed to MSA, Multiple System Atrophy, a condition which in its early stages shares the same symptoms as Parkinson’s. She has also recently been diagnosed with breast cancer and is awaiting a mastectomy.
MSA is caused by a buildup of abnormal protein which damages the nerve cells in the brain. There is currently no cure, and Charlotte’s condition is deteriorating.
It affects balance, movement and the autonomic nervous system, which controls several basic functions including breathing, digestion and speech.
Iain has been her official full-time carer since January last year; looking after Charlotte he says is ‘the best job in the world’.
He added: “If anyone is informed that they are suffering with MSA, we would say to them that now is the time to properly start enjoying your life and make every day count.”