Last year, Regent’s Events campaigned to find one deserving key worker couple who had postponed their wedding due to Covid, and reward them with a £20,000 wedding this year.
Deciding which of the 150 heart-warming entries was the most deserving proved to be a difficult task, with so many individuals and couples giving excellent reasons why they should be the winners of the prize. After a difficult and emotional judging of the entries, the worthy winners were Rob Wilkins, a police officer with the MET, and his fiancée Paige Stride, a paramedic in the London Ambulance Service. Their story of a romantic meeting at a late-night incident at a chicken shop in Harrow caught the eyes of the judging panel, and paired with their continued commitment and service throughout the pandemic, it was unanimously decided that they should be awarded their dream wedding. The British and International press also loved the story which went viral around the world.
After a year’s careful planning and multiple meetings to discuss everything from dress and suit colours, napkins, orders of service and speeches, the big day finally arrived for Rob and Paige. Rafael Azzopardi, Regent’s Conferences and Events Manager, who was the main organiser of the wedding said: “It has been a pleasure working with Rob and Paige on their wedding. Every time we met or spoke to each other I had a real lift just from talking to them and realising what we were doing symbolically for all key workers who couldn’t get married. I have become good friends with both of them, but chats with Rob about marriage were particularly rewarding, though I’m not sure my advice was really what he wanted.”
On what turned out to be one of the warmest and most beautiful days of the year this Autumn, we’re confident Rob and Paige truly had a day to remember, made all the more personal and special by further generous contributions from industry suppliers and friends.
Rob Wilkins wanted (on behalf of his wife!) to pass on his gratitude to all of the team responsible, saying it truly was a day never to forget.
The iconic chicken shop love birds couldn’t see the big day out without a hint of chicken on the Regent’s menu – a year and a day we’ll all remember for a very long time!
