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A celebrant-led ceremony for a wedding day to remember
Every wedding ceremony is unique
Hello there, I’m John, the Southville Celebrant, an experienced Bristol-based wedding celebrant who loves to create tailor-made, uniquely memorable wedding ceremonies.
The best wedding ceremonies really set the tone for the day and absolutely get the celebration started. With a celebrant ceremony there are no restrictions as to what is included, the shape and content is completely flexible. Your wedding day is one of those huge days in life and I'd love to be the wedding celebrant to support you and help create a ceremony which reflects you and your personalities.
..so much wise advice that we really felt he was central to our day
- Miriam and Matt
Let's create an unforgettable wedding day together
You may have some firm ideas, you may want guidance and suggestions, either way I’ll work with you to help create an unforgettable ceremony. Let's work together to create your big day, exactly the way you want it.
Getting to know each couple, so that we can create a ceremony to truly reflect who you are, is the best part of my job. The more we get to know each other the better the ideas start to flow back and forth. There are so many ways to involve family and friends, and I love exploring weddings traditions and rituals, suggesting elements so that you have a ceremony to remember.
Well, who would have guessed just how invaluable and fun a wedding celebrant who really knows their stuff could be? - Mike and Kristina
Bristol, Bath, the Cotswolds - so many wonderful wedding venues
We're really lucky as we have so many great wedding venues on the doorstep, Whether you're looking for a funky Bristol city-centre setting, an elegant Georgian backdrop in Bath or a rustic countryside location in the Cotswolds or the Mendips there is such great choice in and around the Bristol area.
I've worked with quite the variety of venues - woodland glamping in Somerset, historic villas in Clifton, funky converted Bristol churches, even a spectacular Cornish clifftop - and love to create a ceremony to really make the best of the setting.
Our friends and family haven't been able to stop talking about just how special and personal our ceremony was - Lydia and Arthur
A ceremony that was perfect for us...
Review from Ruth and James, St George's, Bristol, May 2025
At first, we were a bit disappointed when we realized our wedding venue couldn’t accommodate the legal part of the ceremony—but it turned out to be a complete blessing in disguise, because it led us to find John.
Over the past year, John met with us countless times to help craft a ceremony that was perfect for us. It felt so personal and intentional. We began with a ring-warming led by my 10-year-old sisters, and it culminated in a beautiful handfasting. Many of our guests commented on how wonderful and unique the ceremony was, full of little quirks that made it feel unmistakably us.
Beyond leading a beautiful ceremony, John helped take so much of the stress out of wedding planning. He guided us through decisions along the way, and even took care of thoughtful details—like liaising directly with both our mums about how the handfasting would work, since we’d asked them to be involved.
You can really tell that John is in this work for the pure love of bringing people together. We’re so grateful to him and couldn’t recommend him highly enough.
Celebrant Blog
Wedding trends for 2024
6 February 2024|Advice and suggestions
"2024 will be the year of unconventional weddings and personalisation," says Editor of Rock My Wedding, Jennifer Read-Dominguez, and its easy to see how some of the wedding trends reflect that.
Alternative venues
There’s no shortage of venues with their own unique charm in and around Bristol if you’re looking for an alternative to the country house hotel setting. The SS Great Britain, Arnos Vale Cemetery, the Mount Without all immediately spring to mind. And with a celebrant-led wedding there is no need to limit yourself just to premises registered with the council for weddings. Why not consider a favourite pub or restaurant? I’m working with a couple for their wedding in the summer and they’re getting married in the Gloucester Old Spot pub.
Sustainability
Increasingly something couples want to take into account, sustainability continues to be a theme for 2024. At a September wedding last year, the bride and her family grew all the flowers for table decoration themselves, and the blooms happily sat in jam jars looking absolutely lovely. There is an increasing move towards renting decoration and wedding outfits too. If it’s a fabulous dress but you’re never likely to wear it again it makes a lot of sense simply to rent it.
Wedding weekenders
The days of the couple being waved off on honeymoon during the wedding reception are well and truly over. These days they want to maximise their time to celebrate with family and friends, and it is increasingly popular to host a wedding in a venue with onsite accommodation. Barley Wood in Wrington and Folly Farm in the Chew Valley are great local possibilities.
What shall I wear?
A big trend for 2024 is for wedding dresses in colours other than white or ivory. And alongside this, bridal veils are most certainly making a comeback. Matching dresses for the bridesmaids are becoming less compulsory. And many couples are also giving their guests some clear direction with a dress code for the day, which really helps avoid the worry of formal or informal attire. For a Christmas wedding I did last year it was “Dress to Impress” and the guests really embraced the vibe.
Celebrant-led weddings
Last but certainly not least…….The bridal website Hitched reports this as their no 1 trend, with a reported 157% increase in traffic to their article on celebrant-led weddings. Couples are really looking to personalise their ceremony, and see the ceremony is the celebration which gets the party started. As Nat Raybould commented “It doesn’t surprise me that Hitched has seen such a huge increase in searching for celebrants in their research! Celebrant ceremony popularity grows naturally, as once you see one, you never forget it!”
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