Wedding traditions of London

A wedding here

Many couples marry at a register office or a licensed hotel, museum or town hall, followed by a reception with a best man's speech, a cake and a first dance. Marriages in a church of England follow the Book of Common Prayer or Common Worship, and the banns are read in the parish beforehand.

The season and the calendar

Spring and summer weekends fill first, and Saturday is the favourite day. Saturday register office slots in popular boroughs are booked many months ahead, and a small civil ceremony with a few guests followed by a pub lunch is common and entirely respectable.

Wedding customs of London

Also part of it, and being written: Wedding (The general shape of a British wedding.), Best man (Gives the speech and keeps the ring.), Wedding cake (Often a fruit cake tiered and cut by the couple together.), Hen party (The bride's night out before the wedding.), Stag night (The groom's equivalent.), Something old, something new (The rhyme many brides still follow.).

Communities and their weddings in London

• Hindu and Gujarati weddings Held in temples and large halls in Wembley and Harrow, with a mandap, saptapadi and a long feast.
• Sikh weddings The Anand Karaj is held in a gurdwara such as the large one in Southall.
• Jewish weddings Marriages under the chuppah in synagogues across north London.
• Bangladeshi and Pakistani weddings Several days of events including the mehndi, the nikah and the walima.

A wedding trail idea for London

1. Old Marylebone Town Hall A well-known register office where many couples marry in London.
2. St Paul's Cathedral and Westminster Abbey Settings of famous royal and state weddings.
3. Southall and Wembley Streets of Punjabi and Gujarati bridal wear and jewellery shops.
4. Brick Lane and Whitechapel Bangladeshi wedding halls, caterers and dress shops.