Couple given a 'royal' wedding in St Ives thanks to kind-hearted strangers
Simon from the West Midlands put a post up on Facebook asking strangers from the town for help on his big day.
Last updated 15th Oct 2020
From Facebook post to fairytale wedding - a couple from the West Midlands said that Cornish residents made them feel like royalty, after a last minute decision to tie the knot in the Duchy.
Police officer Simon Davies, aged 41, put a shoutout on a St Ives Facebook page to rope in locals to give him a hand on the big day.
Simon had originally planned to marry then-fiancée Sabrina, aged 40, in their home town of Dudley earlier this year surrounded by friends and family.
When the coronavirus pandemic struck, the couple had to put their plans on hold due to the uncertainty around government restrictions.
Sneaky Simon hatched a plan, however, and behind Sabrina’s back decided they should get married in St Ives – a town he had adored since childhood and visited many times.
Taking to the Love St Ives Facebook group, the loved-up lawman sought the help of complete strangers to make it a day they would never forget:
“I put a couple of posts up saying that due to covid, and our relatives being in areas that can't travel or are in groups that have to shield, there wasn't really anyone that would be able to come down with us, so I just put it out there saying we would love anybody to come as long as you socially distance and you wear your mask if you need to wear your mask; Please come and clap and cheer.
“I think the initial post I put up got over 1000 likes and hundreds of comments wishing us all the best from New Zealand and Canada, so it wasn’t just the people in the UK and St Ives wishing us the best, it was pretty much everyone, everywhere.”
Simon Davies, Groom
Simon and Sabrina were absolutely delighted when they were greeted by a crowd of 40-60 people outside the St Ives Guildhall.
Standing on the building’s balcony, the newlyweds looked down to see dozens of people clapping and cheering.
With no friends and family there to see the nuptials, a local hair and make-up artist, Kimberley Holland, acted as a witness and chief bridesmaid, and remained with the couple throughout the day.
One mysterious well-wisher even made them a wedding cake. Simon has since been contacted by the benevolent baker, revealed to be local woman Teresa Daniels, and plans to meet with her in Newquay over half term and thank her in person.
“It was amazing. I said at one point that if I was on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, I would have felt like the Royal family waiting for the fly overs. It was weird, it was just crazy. That’s the only way I can describe it.”
Simon Davies
The couple had lost money due to the collapse of their original wedding plans, and Sabrina even had to buy herself a new wedding dress. However, the generosity of locals on the day more than made up for their losses.
“My vocabulary isn't really good enough to explain to them residents in St Ives how grateful I am to each and every single one of them.
“The totally random people who normally, on a day to day basis, would walk past on the street and you might get the odd raised eyebrow or acknowledgement of morning or afternoon - these people made mine and Sabrina's day. It was an amazing day and we will endeavour to live with those fond memories.
“People talk about these single acts of kindness that will change people's attitudes and mentality. On that day, besides the people outside who were there cheering and clapping, we saw probably another couple of hundred people as we walked the streets congratulating us. All those people made me and Sabrina feel so grateful, so happy. They are just amazing people. Each and every single one of them.”
Simon Davies
What Simon did not anticipate was that his date of choice – Saturday 3 October – would take place during Storm Alex.
However, he recalls the clouds parting and the winds dying down just long enough for hundreds of locals to congratulate them as they walked through the town, and for wedding pictures to be taken on the beach.
A St Ives resident, who goes by the name of CornishPastyMan, created a wedding video for the happy couple, which you can watch below.