FAQ
What happens if you have to cancel?
Things happen! If you need to cancel, complete and send me the cancellation form provided within 14 days of signing your booking form and I'll refund your booking fee. After 14 days the booking fee becomes non-refundable.
If you cancel after you've paid the full balance, I cannot offer a refund, but I will send you the completed ceremony script, which you may use as you wish.
But what happens if I have to cancel?
Do I charge for travel?
I'll do everything I can to honour my commitment to you, but if I can't avoid cancelling, I'll refund all payments and do whatever I can to secure satisfactory alternatives for you, including suggestions for a replacement celebrant.
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Yes, if your ceremony is more than 10 miles from my home. I’m using public transport at the moment, so it’ll be the cost of my return fare (we’ll sort this out and agree the price based on published fares at the time of booking). I also charge for overnight accommodation if necessary (if you’re a long way away, your ceremony is very late or very early in the day).
Are my ceremonies 'official'?
For the moment, ceremonies led by independent Celebrants do not carry legal status. But separate the legal registration of your marriage/civil partnership from a celebration ceremony and enjoy the best of both worlds!
At a Registry Office you make your declarations in front of two witnesses and obtain a marriage licence. Make sure you ask for a 'statutory ceremony' (check with your local Register Office for prices) and arrange for witnesses. Then you can have your 'real' ceremony with a Celebrant!
For most people, this is the event they remember - with the fancy frocks, vows, rings, readings and everything else that makes the occasion special. Don't get me wrong; if you want your union to be official, you need the legal paperwork. But a ceremony is much more than getting an official certificate.
It's about intensely personal statements of love or commitment, special little rituals and symbols that express your hopes,
values and personalities. Some of this is available in a Registrar or Minister led ceremony, but much of it isn't. If a deeply personal vibe is important to you, you'll probably want a Celebrant led ceremony once you've done 'the legal bit'.
I’m terrified of writing my own vows, HELP!
Don’t panic, I’ll help you find a solution. You don’t HAVE to write your own vows. Your day - your rules! If you want to write them I can help with a wealth of ideas. Maybe it's just reading them that terrifies you? I can read them for you and you can repeat them. Or just say the “I do” bits. I even have a few cool ideas for exchanging your most heartfelt and intimate promises without anyone having to speak a word in public!
Can we involve our pets in our ceremony?
Of course. But can you please make sure they’re people-friendly, well behaved and chilled around crowds, noise and hullabaloo? A fractious animal is nobody’s idea of fun, and it’s not fair on the animal either. And try to find out if any of your guests are nervous of animals or have allergies. Cousin Beryl sitting wide-eyed and rigid with terror, or uncle Ravi raking his skin off in the third row is nobody’s idea of fun either.
Where do I find inspiration?
Writing, sketching and painting. Philosophy, metaphysics, magic and quantum theory. Singing, storytelling, teaching. ETs, hauntings and the paranormal. Speculative and fabulist fiction. Conservation, landscape and nature. Architecture and the built environment. Role-play, ritual, dressing-up and performing. Listening to music.