Couple who missed out on tying the knot by less than a day

DEVASTATED: Tom Hall and bride-to-be Heather McLaren, who said: ‘I’ve very rarely felt that sad.’

THE DISAPPOINTMENT is evident in Heather McLaren’s voice as she recalls hearing the news that weddings would be stopped as the country entered the coronavirus lockdown on March 23.

“I was just absolutely devastated. I’ve very rarely felt that sad about anything,” she said.

Miss McLaren, 28, and her fiancé Tom Hall, 29, missed out on saying their vows in Leeds by less than 24 hours.

It was a second blow to the couple, who had arranged a last-minute ceremony after foreseeing the big day they had originally planned in April in Miss McLaren’s home town of Edinburgh was unlikely to go ahead.

Living apart for religious reasons, they were keen to wed and move in together – so as coronavirus took hold they quickly organised to marry at their local church instead on March 24.

“We literally had everything arranged for the next day [after lockdown],” Miss McLaren said.

“And then that was it. We’ve been in our own houses since then, watching the news, trying to figure out when weddings might be allowed again. The fact we lost out by less than 24 hours felt so unfair.”

Now in limbo, the couple are waiting for restrictions to lift to allow them to exchange vows in a simple ceremony – likely without their family and friends.

They have postponed their big day until March next year, when they hope to have a blessing and reception with all their guests.

“The wedding will be really special but in a completely different way and I’d rather have it really different than a rubbish version of what we’d hoped for,” Miss McLaren said. “I would be so aware of who’s missing if we tried to do it any other way.

“We are excited about how it might go but everything’s a bit tinged with, well, this shouldn’t really be happening. You just have to accept the situation and find what you can enjoy.”