The gift of love…
Jessie surprises Marlon with a Christmas wedding
Grab your hats – we’ve got a Dingle wedding to go to!
Or at least that’s what Jessie is hoping for. The headteacher has decided to show boyfriend Marlon just how much she loves him by arranging a Christmas Day marriage – only he knows nothing about it. What could possibly go wrong?!
The couple’s kids, April and Ellis, are in on the secret, as is Lydia, who clearly has a talent for wedding planning – something Megan should bear in mind if she’s ever recruiting at Take A Vow.
‘It’s Lydia that drives it all, and it’s her interpretation of a Caribbean wedding,’ says Sandra Marvin, who plays the bride-to-be. ‘She plans the decor and sorts out the food – although Monty the dog eats the cake at one point.’
But when Marlon clocks Lydia cooking Caribbean treats, he twigs that something’s going on. Forced into a corner, Lydia tells him she’s planning a surprise wedding…
For her and Sam! Marlon’s thrilled for the pair and insists on taking over the catering, saying it will be his gift to the ‘happy couple’.
The night before the planned nuptials, Jessie persuades Marlon to take Sam out to The Woolpack – her sneaky way of getting him out of the house and giving him a stag do. The pair get so obliterated that Charity throws them out.
‘They end up in a delivery van parked outside, and are driven away into the night,’ reveals Mark Charnock, who plays Marlon.
Surprise surprise, when they wake up the next morning, they discover they’re in the middle of nowhere. It’s panic stations for ‘best man’ Marlon.
‘He says to Sam, “We have to get back to the village, because it’s your wedding day!”,’ adds Mark.
‘So Sam thinks he’s getting married and is really emotional.’
The men eventually return to Wishing Well, where the barn has been decked out for the special occasion. As Jessie does her ‘Ta da!’ bit, poor Sam realises he’s not getting wed after all, while Marlon is so shocked, he faints!
Once he comes round, will he agree to say ‘I do?’ And will the rest of the day go without a hitch?