I’ve been looking forward to playing at Peckforton Castle in Cheshire ever since I took the booking way back in August last year.  The venue is simply stunning!  To deepen my anticipation I treated myself to a new DSLR camera for my birthday last week, which I’ve been dying to try out somewhere picturesque.  The British weather is always something of a gamble; snow in April, heat waves in December.  I had my fingers crossed that today would at least be dry and relatively clear so that I could road test my new camera.  Low and behold, by some miracle the weather forecast was spot on.  Today we were blessed with the most beautiful day of the year so far.

Before I could start enjoying my new hobby, I had a job to do.  The bride and groom had chosen two of my wedding music packages; I was booked to play at the ceremony and drinks reception.  In normal circumstances this would be very straight forward, however there were a few extra details which the bride had requested, so I needed to make sure I followed her instructions.  The bride had asked for a particular version of ‘All I Got’ by Newton Faulkner.  The tune is easy enough to play, but it had to be timed just right.  The idea was for the music to start and at the end of the introduction, the bride would enter.  This was all planned in advance so I knew the drill.  The tricky part was in the execution of our meticulously laid arrangement.  The song involves the use of a capo on the guitar, which would take a few seconds to affix.  I also needed to find the song on my iPad.  As it’s a new song I wasn’t willing to do it from memory in case I made a mistake.  The ceremony was due to start at 2pm, however owing to some last minute glitches (seat covers being delivered late and then discovering they were the wrong size and didn’t fit!), 2pm passed us by.  The ETA of the bride was now a guessing game, so I decided to stay in standard tuning (same tuning as the chosen processional song) and keep watch for any signs that she might be on her way.  I was finally tipped off by Peter Aust, the toastmaster, that the bride had arrived.  As he announced her entrance I swiftly geared up, found the sheet music and began to play.  We were finally underway and a palpable sense of relief could be felt all round.

I had to dust off a few lesser played songs for the signing of the register.  Coldplay’s ‘In My Place’ and The Beatle’s ‘And I Love Her’ were requested, along with Extreme’s ‘More Than Words’.  It’s not that I don’t like those particular songs, it’s just very easy to fall into a routine of playing the same favoured songs from my set list in the short amount of time I’ve been booked for.  Some songs inevitably get left out in the cold.

Following the wedding ceremony I relocated to the other side of the castle and played for another 30 minutes as guests enjoyed some drinks.  After a brief mingle with guests, the bride and groom went off to have some photographs taken.  I took this as a cue to pack up my equipment.  Because we had started late, I was finishing my set later than expected.  Luckily the weather was still fair so I decided to hang around and take some photographs of the castle and surroundings.  I was spoilt for choice by Peckforton Castle’s many offerings.  The castle grounds were impeccably well maintained and rather impressive.  They also provided falconry which guests could participate in if they wished.  I didn’t feel comfortable asking to participate because, even though I had finished my set, it was still somebody else’s wedding.  I did get one or two good shots of these magnificent creatures though.

I had a good chat with Peter Aust about the wedding industry and the types of weddings he has been booked for prior to this one.  He kindly offered to pose for a couple of photos, with the castle making the perfect backdrop.  The red top coat, green grass and clear blue sky make for a marvellous image.

Peckforton Castle in Cheshire is without a doubt one of the most spectacular wedding venues I’ve had the pleasure of playing at.  I hope I get booked to play guitar at another wedding here as I’d come back in a heartbeat.