Couple tie the knot at Murray’s hotel in 25,000th humanist wedding ceremony

JAMES HAMILTON

at Andy Murray’s Cromlix House Hotel, near Dunblane, at the weekend.

They were given lifetime membership to the Humanist Society Scotland by celebrant Melanie Leckie after exchanging their vows at a ceremony.

The couple told why they opted for a humanist ceremony. They said: “It meant we could have a more personal wedding that allowed us to tailor the ceremony to exactly how we wanted it.

“We are delighted to be the 49,999th and 50,000th people to be married by the Humanist

Scotland.”

Demand for humanist weddings in Scotland has grown significantly since the charity secured the right for them to be legally recognised in 2005.

In 2010, the number of humanist weddings

Society exceeded the number of Roman Catholic ceremonies in Scotland, and two years ago those conducted by the Kirk.

In 2015, a total of 4,290 weddings were conducted by humanists, according to the National Records of Scotland. The numbers conducted by Kirk ministers was 4,052. Scotland remains the only part of the UK where such marriages have legal recognition.

HSS’s head of ceremonies and chaplaincy, Lynsey Kidd, said: “In 2005 when we were granted permission to provide legal wedding ceremonies, we could never have predicted how popular they would be. More people are choosing the warmth and joy of an ethical, secular ceremony for themselves.”

Since then, there have been 20,000 Scots humanist weddings.