Choosing a celebrant was really important for us. With the French custom of getting legally married at the town hall, which we kept very small, we really wanted the ceremony in front of all our guest to be the highlight of the weekend and Piers did not disappoint. In reviewing celebrants we realised we needed someone who was able to understand what we were about and what we really wanted to get out of our ceremony. We were looking for someone with a similar sense of humour and a real appreciation that the event is all about laughter and having fun. When we got in touch with Piers we instantly knew we’d found the right person for the job. He knew exactly how to bring the ideas out of us and take the scarily blank canvass of the French ceremony and put a real Jones/O’Neill stamp on it. It is fair to say we weren’t the easiest of Piers clients. With our head in the clouds, some of the finer details of the ceremony we not coming together as planned, so Piers knowing what was important to us rallied the ushers into action removing the last minute worries that could easily have stressed us out. For us, we had been writing our bilingual vows late into the night, giving Piers no chance of knowing what we’d be saying to each other. Nevertheless the ceremony came together better than we could ever have imagined. The success was in no small part due to Piers’ ability to adlib, maintaining the flows of emotion and tying together the messages in our readings with the words in our vows while distracting the congregation from the chaos of ushers forgetting their roles. It is so easy to think that you could get a charismatic uncle or a confident friend to run the ceremony as it would be a huge cost saving, but don’t. It would be the biggest mistake you make in your wedding planning and leave you only with regrets. The very fact that you start with a blank canvass in France, no official formalities and legal obligations made the need for a good celebrant even more important. The time and effort put in upfront to get exactly what you both want from the event pays for itself but in addition you get someone who is calm, organised and able to keep you relaxed on the day. If I were to plan my wedding again, the celebrant would be the first person I booked.