Gretna celebrates a very special day with 23 marriages and no hitches

IT WAS a day the likes of which Gretna will not see for another 100 years.

• Happy couples: Gail and James Pilcher were the 12th wedding party of the day.

Dozens of couples flocked from across the country to seize the once-in-a-century opportunity to be hitched in the border town on 10/10/10.

From early morning onwards, Gretna's streets reverberated to the skirl of the pipes as some 46 couples said "I do" in one of the six licensed venues around the town keen to take advantage of the good fortune associated with the special date in a place synonymous with marriage.

Rolls-Royces jostled with ribbon-covered horse-drawn carriages for ownership of the narrow streets heading to and from their individual ceremonies, while the tourist crowds were outnumbered by kilt-clad or morning-suited guests and bridesmaids.

Though sunny and mild, the blustery weather meant that outside Old Blacksmith's Shop, where 16 ceremonies were being held, a small tornado of confetti blew up as the day moved on.

Among those exchanging vows at the shop were James Pilcher and Gail McPhillips from Newton Stewart in Dumfries and Galloway, wedding No 12.

"Well it is such a special date, I think everybody knows that," said Ms McPhillips, 19. "But for me on top of that, I really wanted to get married today because it was a year ago to the day that I found out I was pregnant with my daughter Zoe.

"I've been to a few weddings here before, and I've always thought it was a beautiful place with a special atmosphere, so it was natural to get married here."

Mr Pilcher, 24, said: "It's proved lucky so far. We've had fantastic weather and it's been a brilliant day, relaxed and enjoyable."

Neither half of the happy couple were perturbed at being part of a day-long procession of ceremonies. Among the couples were Sue Nicholson and partner Bill from Stockton-on-Tees who said she chose the day, "so Bill won't forget our anniversary."

As they had their photographs taken under a horseshoe-clad archway outside the Blacksmith's Shop, relatives of the next soon-to-be-married couple were already being ushered into the reception room.

While hundreds of and guests were converging on Gretna, over on Islay German couple Rolf Heff, 40, and Pirkko Batteiger, 44, became the first couple to get married in Scotland when they took their vows just after the clock struck midnight in a romantic candlelit ceremony at an ancient site in the Hebrides. But in Gretna, for those involved in both ensuring each party's individual big days are perfect, yesterday's spate of ceremonies was a challenge.Blacksmith's Shop manager Jim Henderson said: "It is a bit of a conveyor belt on days like this, but we try to make sure couples don't feel that."

Piper Alan Marshall has been playing wedding pipes at Gretna for 46 years but even he said performing for so many couples in a day was tough. "It can be tiring but you've got to treat everyone the same for their 30 minutes."

Down at Gretna Hall Hotel, staff Pat Robertson, Lauren Boyd, Emma Slee and Gordon Forbes, said big days were their favourites. Mrs Robertson said: "We've got three rooms and so stagger each of the ceremonies and try to make sure everything works."