Lynda Wakefield & Viv Sadd

St. Peter's Cork, Cork City

Photos courtesy of  Jorge Ruiz Villasante

On May 13, 2022, Lynda Wakefield and Viv Sadd had a bespoke wedding ceremony at St. Peter’s Cork, in the city and went on to The River Lee Hotel, five minutes around the corner, to celebrate becoming husband and wife.

The Background

 Lynda Wakefield, from Cork and Viv Sadd, from Wales both worked together in community development for many years. They got on tremendously well as work colleagues, but Viv knew his feelings ran deeper. One morning Lynda and Viv took a morning stroll on Myrtleville Beach, near Cork City and the Welsh man gathered up enough courage to ask Lynda out.

Fast forward seven years and back to Myrtleville Beach they go. Viv had let on that he had a work issue and needed to clear his head and work through it. He asked Lynda to join him and, although she was all dressed up for a night out in the city, she swapped her stilettos for a pair of runners and off they went. Lynda remembers it fondly: “It was a stunning night with a completely clear sky full of twinkling stars with nobody else around. Viv took me completely by surprise and there were a lot of tears of joy. We celebrated in private that night which was lovely and intimate before sharing with family and friends the next day.

The Wedding

Last May in front of 120 close family and friends and their three children, Cai (19), Amelie (18) and Bethan (4), Viv and Lynda said their I ‘Do’s at St. Peter’s Cork, a deconsecrated church since 1949. This little slice of heaven is tucked away off one of Cork’s most charming city streets, with features dating back to 1580. It marries ancient Ireland with modern traditions and that’s why Viv and Lynda choose the venue for their special day.


Starting off the day the bridesmaids walked up the aisle to “Here Comes the Sun” by the Beatles. Lynda walked into Viv’s arms with “I Can’t help Falling in Love with You” by Elvis. They were married by Tom Farrell, Spiritualist Union of Ireland. They both felt it was a very personal ceremony, customised to their personality and cultures. The newlyweds surprised the guests after the ceremony by organising for hotdogs and beer to be waiting outside St. Peter’s to keep everyone tied over until the meal later in the evening. “This went down a real treat with everyone,” said Lynda. 


Some of their favourite memories of the day include “Viv walking into St Peter’s and seeing the venue ready for the ceremony as we had planned, catching the first glance of each other from opposite ends of the aisle, spending the morning with my beautiful family and friends and meeting our fabulous guests after the ceremony.” 


Just towards the end of his speech, Viv, being Welsh, wanted to display his love of rugby. He surprised everyone by producing a rugby ball and proudly demonstrated his new wife’s sporting skills and got some spin passing in with his bride over the heads and tables of the guests across the breadth of the room. “Everyone loved it and cheered along and not a glass was knocked,” recalls Lynda. Later that evening their first dance was “Candy” by Paolo Nutini.


Some of the bride’s advice is- “Compile a list of your favourite tracks for the DJ in advance to be sure they play the music you would like to hear on your wedding night.”

Tell us about your experience at St. Peter’s Cork

“St. Peter’s on North Main Street in the heart of Cork City is a hidden gem set back slightly from the shopping street. It is a beautiful former church which is now an arts/events centre. The staff were wonderful to deal with and the Manager, Christine Moloney, was thorough in the preparations, very accommodating and flexible in meeting our requests and needs and was very ‘hands on’ and present on the day. It was great to have our bespoke wedding ceremony in such a beautiful building in the city centre of Cork and, of course, as it was a sunny day so our guests were able to enjoy their food and drinks in the beautiful front courtyard gardens.” www.stpeterscork.ie

Suppliers

Engagement/wedding rings Keane’s Jewellers, Cork

Dress Bella Bleu, Cork

Suits Tom Murphy, Cork

Bridesmaids’ dresses The Princess Rooms, Cork

Wedding Celebrant Tom Farrell, Spiritualist Union of Ireland

Photographer Jorge Ruiz Villasante

Videographer Sirius HD Productions

Band/DJ The Roaring 40’s

Florist Cork Flower Studio

Hair Susie the Hairstylist, Cork

Make-Up Siobhan O Mahony, Cork

Wedding car Bianconi Cars, Cork

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