James and Kathryn drove up to Gretna Green the day before their wedding in 2021, in a clapped-out Seat Leon. On the big day, while Kathryn got her hair done, James went to Gretna football club for a look at the grounds. Their witnesses were a photographer and “some random person who normally works there but had just come in for a cup of tea”. The ceremony, plus the photos, took about 45 minutes, then they went for a pint. Afterwards, they went to Carlisle and “did an escape room – I was still in my wedding dress”, says Kathryn. “The woman thought I was mad.” They finished with one second to spare – they still have the ticket, saying 59:59 – and “had our first marital row”, says Kathryn, about “how to get out of the escape room”.
Forget the micro-wedding, which is one with fewer than 50 attendees, and consider the micro-micro wedding – just the couple, or maybe a handful of guests. Being allowed to have a row on your big day is just one of what turns out to be a lot of upsides driving the trend. Another advantage that comes up constantly is that you don’t have to engage with the whole wedding industry. “The ridiculous overpricing … it didn’t feel like us,” says Matthew, 35, who married Jo, 30, in May 2022. They had their parents, a sister and an aunt – six guests in all.
