A Retro London Wedding & 70s Inspird Disco | Helaina Storey

I’ve an actual gentle spot for {couples} who strategy their marriage ceremony with a way of humour, a bit irreverence and the boldness to do issues otherwise, and Michelle and Alan’s London celebration has all three in abundance.

The couple married on twenty ninth August 2026 at Chelsea Old Town Hall earlier than heading to the Duke of London in Brentford for a brilliantly unconventional night reception. This retro-inspired occasions area, full with a traditional and collectable automotive showroom, classic interiors and its personal disco mezzanine, was absolutely the good alternative for his or her 70s-inspired celebration.

Their marriage ceremony was photographed by Conor on behalf of Helaina Storey Photography, with Helaina additionally producing a Super 8mm marriage ceremony movie, shared under.

Michelle wore the slinky, backless Penelope costume by SAU LEE , styled with a ruffle-edged veil, earlier than turning into a sequinned Meshki costume for the night. The styling was splendidly daring and nostalgic, with a palette of purple and pink, touches of pale blue, a classic Thunderbird and an infinite illuminated purple coronary heart. Upstairs in Plonkers Bar, the celebrations continued with a correct disco, full with reside music and DJs spinning vinyl into the early hours.

But past all that fabulous retro styling, that is additionally a marriage about household and friendship. Michelle and Alan are initially from Australia, and their two daughters, Harlow and Ophelia, made up their whole marriage ceremony get together. Their London celebration introduced collectively the chums who’ve turn out to be such an essential a part of their lives right here, a lot of whom have shared within the seventeen years of life, love and household that led to this super-fun event.

I’m delighted to share this marriage ceremony and Michelle’s account of it, which is filled with humour, heat and a few glorious recommendation for {couples} planning their very own celebrations.

Our celebration was on the Duke of London in Brentford, West London, simply across the nook from the place we reside. As we’re additionally planning a celebration in Australia, our London marriage ceremony was initially meant to be one thing small and native, however it rapidly grew!

The Duke of London is certainly not a conventional marriage ceremony venue, which was precisely what we needed. It’s a traditional and collectable automotive showroom mixed with an occasions area, with the brilliantly named Plonkers Bar, a retro disco mezzanine, overlooking the showroom above. Alan and I each love vehicles of every kind, though we positively lean in direction of the classic ones, and the quick ones! So it instantly felt very us.

We’d been to occasions on the Duke of London’s earlier venue and all the time liked how distinctive it was. When I heard they have been creating this new area in Brentford, I contacted them and ended up reserving our marriage ceremony earlier than it had even been constructed or opened, purely from the design ideas and a bit religion of their imaginative and prescient.

Thankfully, that religion paid off. We had our ceremony, dinner and dancing downstairs surrounded by unimaginable vehicles, earlier than the get together continued upstairs in Plonkers. There was one thing fairly surreal about sitting all the way down to a ravishing marriage ceremony dinner and later dancing with traditional vehicles throughout us.

It gave the entire marriage ceremony a lot character with out us needing to remodel the area or make it appear to be a traditional marriage ceremony venue. So a lot of our friends commented on how cool and weird it was, which was precisely the response we’d hoped for. We needed someplace folks would stroll into and instantly suppose, that is completely different, and the Duke of London completely delivered.

For anybody questioning how the day ran, it started with our authorized ceremony at 10am at Chelsea Old Town Hall on King’s Road, London, adopted by post-ceremony drinks at 10:30am at The Trafalgar Pub, additionally on King’s Road, London. Our 2nd ceremony and reception ran from 5pm to 8pm on the Duke of London on the Brentford Riviera, after which our marriage ceremony disco carried on from 8pm to 1am in Plonkers Bar, Brentford Riviera, which is a part of the Duke of London.

A few years earlier we’d truly deliberate to get married in Las Vegas, combining it with The Killers’ twentieth anniversary reveals, however the plans fell by. We by no means fairly let go of the Vegas concept although, so components of it discovered their approach into this marriage ceremony as an alternative.

The Duke of London already had an excellent classic really feel, which naturally led us in direction of a 70s-inspired disco vibe. We each love music, notably 70s music and disco, so all of it got here collectively fairly organically, a bit little bit of Vegas elopement, a bit little bit of classic vehicles and a very good disco.

The purple and pink tones, with touches of blue, got here from that inspiration too (The little chapel in Vegas), and our massive purple LED coronary heart was our personal tackle a kitsch Vegas marriage ceremony chapel backdrop. We ended up describing the general type as “A Disco Romance Elopement”.

The venue’s employees and supervisor have been readily available to assist on the day however myself, Alan and our buddies pulled all of it collectively. I designed each side of the day together with the menu with the chef.

In the morning, we had a small authorized ceremony at Chelsea Old Town Hall, a bit nod to our London life and the place we’ve made our dwelling. Alan and I arrived individually as I actually needed to maintain that conventional first-look second.

He hadn’t seen me in my costume, so strolling down the aisle with our two daughters and seeing his response for the primary time was extremely particular.

At the ceremony, my stroll down the aisle was to “Thank You” by Led Zeppelin and signing the certificates was to “Everywhere” by Fleetwood Mac. Our reception entrance was to “I Was Made for Lovin’ You” by KISS, and we had our first dance to “You’re the First, the Last, My Everything” by Barry White.

Our authorized ceremony at Chelsea Old Town Hall was carried out by the registrars there.

We didn’t embody any formal spiritual or cultural traditions in our celebrations. We’re each Australian and have constructed our life and household collectively in London, so the day naturally felt like a mix of each elements of our lives, however in a really casual and private approach.

We truly wrote our personal vows, after which by no means stated them! Our registrar at Chelsea appeared a bit flustered on the morning and in some way the second for our private vows was missed, so we solely exchanged the official vows required for the authorized ceremony. At the time we simply went with it, and to at the present time we nonetheless haven’t shared what we wrote with one another.

We’ve determined that maybe they weren’t meant for that second in spite of everything. We’re saving them both for our Australian celebration or to learn to one another privately on our first marriage ceremony anniversary. So, for now, our vows stay a secret, even from one another!

We had two readings throughout our Chelsea ceremony. Our daughters, Harlow and Ophelia, learn “Once in a Lifetime” (Anon) collectively. Having them concerned within the ceremony was actually essential to us. They’ve been a part of our story for many of our 17 years collectively, so listening to them learn the phrases “Once in a lifetime you find someone who touches not only your heart, but also your soul” was a really particular second.

Our shut buddy Taryn Ponte additionally learn ‘The Art of a Good Marriage’ by Wilferd Arlan Peterson. After so a few years collectively, we liked its message {that a} good marriage isn’t about perfection or just discovering the fitting particular person, it’s one thing you proceed to create collectively by friendship, endurance, love and all of the on a regular basis elements of sharing a life.

We met in London in direction of the tip of summer season 2007, though it seems our paths most likely ought to have crossed years earlier in Australia.

I’d moved to the UK from Sydney about 18 months earlier, and Alan had arrived after travelling round Europe, picked up some constructing work in London and in some way by no means left. We met by my greatest buddy’s flatmates and have become a part of the identical group, going to gigs, nights out and watching soccer in pubs.

We found we have been each Liverpool supporters, so Alan was without end inviting me to the pub to observe video games with him. Over the subsequent 12 months we grew to become inseparable buddies, though so far as I used to be involved it was fully platonic. I genuinely had no concept he fancied me.

As we received nearer, we found an virtually ridiculous variety of connections again dwelling. We’d grown up in the identical a part of Sydney, knew numerous the identical folks, each our households labored within the constructing trade, and Alan’s grandparents had even owned the native video store the place my mum later labored for years. Somehow, we needed to transfer 10,000 miles away to London to really meet.

It wasn’t till Alan returned to Australia for household causes that I realised how a lot I missed him, and that maybe he was greater than my greatest buddy. He minimize his journey brief, got here again to London and we formally received collectively on 1st February 2009. Within a month we have been dwelling collectively and we’ve been just about inseparable ever since. Two daughters, a home, companies and a complete lot of life adopted.

I’d all the time needed to get married, however we stored placing different objectives first. I’d teasingly introduce Alan as my “boyfriend” after effectively over a decade collectively, simply to remind him he nonetheless hadn’t proposed. To make issues worse, I knew he’d had an engagement ring hidden away for greater than two years! So each vacation, romantic dinner or special day I’d suppose, absolutely that is it? It grew to become one thing of a operating joke.

He lastly proposed 17 years after we first met, on a household vacation in Zakynthos. He carried the ring round for nearly the complete ten-day journey ready for the fitting second, and really practically misplaced it after leaving his bag at a lookout whereas we went all the way down to the seaside for drinks. I had no concept the ring was truly with us, however his sudden panic concerning the lacking bag makes much more sense now!

On the ultimate night, at sundown close to the Keri Caves, with our two daughters and buddies there, he lastly received down on one knee. Alan is famously a person of few phrases, so after 17 years, and greater than two years of me ready for that ring to make an look, there was no grand speech, simply: “Sorry this took so long. Will you marry me?”

It was very Alan, and completely good.

After ready 17 years for the proposal, we moved fairly quicker with the marriage! We have been engaged for precisely a 12 months and deliberate a day that felt fully like us, intimate, enjoyable, a bit unconventional and centred round our ladies, our closest buddies and one superb get together.

Later that night, our shut buddy Joe Ponte acted as our unofficial celebrant for the ceremony on the Duke of London. We needed our buddies who hadn’t been on the authorized ceremony to nonetheless really feel a part of that second, however in a way more relaxed and private approach. Having somebody who is aware of us so effectively lead it made it humorous, heat and fully distinctive to us.

The Duke of London is each an occasions area and a traditional automotive showroom, so it already has a lot character that we intentionally stored the styling easy.

The venue equipped the tables, chairs, white tablecloths and napkins, and we didn’t rent any further décor.

Our caterers have been Bourne’s Riviera and so they have been unimaginable. Amazingly, we solely confirmed them two weeks earlier than the marriage because the venue didn’t but have its personal restaurant or catering operation arrange as a consequence of lately opening! Thankfully they moved their residency into Duke of London on the proper time.

Our lighting was venue equipped, though we forgot to alter the big showroom ceiling lights to purple.

Our important options have been the LED coronary heart Alan constructed, the desk styling and a projector enjoying black-and-white images and previous movies of the 2 of us and our daughters all through the night. It added one thing actually private to the area with out taking away from the venue itself.

The coronary heart backdrop was nspired by the center on the Sure Thing Chapel in Las Vegas, a bit nod to the Vegas marriage ceremony we had initially deliberate. Alan designed and constructed the center himself by our constructing firm, HOAM BUILD LTD, which made it much more private. We needed one thing daring, retro and playful fairly than a conventional floral ceremony construction. It fitted completely with our theme and ended up changing into one of many defining options of the marriage and an excellent backdrop for the pictures.

We labored carefully with Joe McBride of Bourne’s Riviera to curate the menu. I gave him our finances, instructed him we needed one thing contemporary and filled with flavour with a little bit of an Australian-inspired surf-and-turf really feel, and we constructed it collectively.

Joe has additionally frolicked in Australia and I believe that actually got here by in his type of cooking, contemporary, vibrant and unfussy, however completely scrumptious. So filled with flavour each chew.

On the menu was a Bloody Maria-inspired gazpacho, grilled prawns with chimichurri and king scallops with pea and mint velouté, then Australian zhoug ribeye steak with chips.

The wines have been chosen and equipped by our good buddy Yann Bourigault, General Manager of Castelnau Wine Agencies, who paired the menu with Dr Loosen Mosel Riesling 2025, Mirabeau Pure Provence Rosé 2024 and Viticcio Chianti Classico Riserva 2017.

I designed all of the stationery, menus and indicators through Canva and had them printed at Kall Kwik in Ealing. Our buddy Allison is an incredible baker, so I despatched her a couple of inspiration photographs for our cake and she or he executed the thought completely.

We offered white love heart-shaped sun shades as I needed to get photographs and perform a little video pattern of everybody sporting the love coronary heart sun shades.

We used The Wedding Shop reward registry. They have been improbable. We selected plenty of objects on-line as we have been eager to largely have folks put in direction of our honeymoon but additionally went to their townhouse for a glass of bubbly and private buying expertise. They have been improbable and I extremely suggest them.

Music was an enormous a part of our day and we liked that just about everybody who carried out had a private connection to us.

For our night ceremony and dinner, we had Penny Lynch and Flynn Wilkins, an extremely gifted younger duo aged simply 13 and 15 who we knew by our daughters’ college. I’d heard Penny singing in a video her mum posted and thought her voice was unimaginable. We liked the thought of giving a younger band a possibility to be a part of the day, and so they completely smashed it.

From 8pm, as the remainder of our friends arrived, our buddies The Mighty Molly Collective took over upstairs in Plonkers Bar with two hours of reside music.

Then from 10pm till 1am, two extra buddies, DJs Danny Ryan and Jonathan Ross, took us by to the tip of the evening. The venue solely has vinyl decks, so the complete late-night set was performed on vinyl, which felt completely good for our classic disco theme.

Having buddies and folks related to our household present a lot of the music made the entire evening really feel much more private.

Our first dance was to “You’re the First, the Last, My Everything” by Barry White. Al didn’t have an excessive amount of enter into the day and went together with every part. However, someday I messaged him about our first dance and he didn’t take lengthy to ship me this one. I listened to the phrases, we love a little bit of Barry White (we’ve sung it at karaoke earlier than through the years) and so it was good. We went with it and liked it. I don’t suppose folks have been anticipating that track.

There have been so many little moments that it’s onerous to choose only one. My daughters strolling me down the aisle was fairly particular. But I might say for each of us our favorite half was truly the jiffy earlier than we arrived on the night celebration. Alan and I have been alone at the back of the Thunderbird driving to the venue, a couple of tequilas in, having this little second collectively reflecting on every part that had already occurred that day and every part to return, and the truth that after 17 years, we have been truly married!

In true us-fashion, the arrival didn’t go fully to plan. We have been so distracted we forgot to message our buddy to cue the band or direct the driving force to the right entrance highway, so we drove straight previous everybody, circled, waited a minute and tried once more! We couldn’t cease laughing.

The second try was good. KISS was enjoying, our daughters have been ready to greet us and opened the automotive doorways, and all our closest buddies have been there wanting unimaginable. Everyone had fully understood the Funky Formal task, helped by the Instagram dress-code video I’d despatched beforehand!

Sitting in that tremendous automotive, seeing our ladies and all our buddies, understanding we have been formally married and had a complete evening of music, meals and surprises forward of us, it was precisely how I’d imagined it.

Another humorous second was after I went to alter my costume with my greatest buddy and we received locked out and have been caught within the automotive park accessible bathrooms with no approach again in to the get together or out of that space and no telephones. Thankfully the supervisor checked on us 10 minutes later.

I’d most likely say three issues; Firstly, have enjoyable with it and don’t attempt to make every part good. Embrace the errors and the issues that don’t fairly go to plan, they typically turn out to be the funniest and most memorable elements of the day.

Secondly, contain your folks the place you may. So a lot of our marriage ceremony got here from the skills of individuals we love, the music, DJs, cake, flowers, wine, ceremony and styling. It made every part really feel much more private and was additionally a stunning strategy to have fun the extremely gifted folks round us.

And lastly, everybody tells you to recollect to examine in with one another all through the day. It’s nice recommendation, however it’s truly a lot more durable than it sounds! You’re continually being pulled from one particular person to a different, into images or onto the subsequent factor within the schedule. So don’t put strain on yourselves to have countless good little moments collectively, simply attempt to examine in when you may and in any other case waft.

For us, a type of moments got here proper on the finish. Walking barefoot again to our lodge collectively, lastly simply the 2 of us, we received to swap tales concerning the evening, the humorous issues that had occurred once we have been aside, the moments we’d shared and every part we’d in some way missed. It was fully unplanned and a type of little moments I do know we’ll all the time keep in mind.

Ultimately, make the marriage really feel such as you. The imperfect, sudden bits are sometimes the place the very best recollections are made.

I want I remembered to ask to alter the large showroom lights from white to be placed on the purple setting for the dinner and mock ceremony. Otherwise, nothing. It was precisely what we needed and higher.

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