The competitive world of Covid brides

I had planned to spend this Saturday in a large white dress, sipping rosé and cutting into a three-tier rhubarb pavlova. Instead, I’ll be drinking gin on my sofa as family members dial in to offer commiserations to me and my fiancé.

I am a Covid bride — one of the many whose weddings have been put on hold because of the lockdown. While the pandemic has had devastating and irreversible effects on people’s lives, it has also left many engaged couples with nowhere to go.

In our case, the marriage licence application had been sent, the father of the groom’s slideshow completed, bridesmaids’ dresses finally agreed on (this may have been the hardest bit of all) and the table plan was under way. I’d begun to boast that wedding planning was easy. Then along came a global pandemic and knocked everything off course.

In February there were early warning signs my date could be at risk. Friends would make teasing jokes (‘I hope you have wedding insurance!’ — I didn’t). But as the news from Italy worsened and the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in the UK increased, the inevitable became clear. Nervous colleagues avoided saying the W-word around me for fear of a volatile response. The editor poured wine.

While I was disheartened, a general air of defiance hung around my other engaged friends. They messaged guests to explain that they planned to press on. Their weddings were in the summer, so there was nothing to worry about. Brides such as I, who had gone for spring dates, seemed like the unfortunate ones. But over time, the picture changed.

Now it looks as if we spring brides were lucky. We’ve been given a competitive advantage. With no choice but to postpone, we have a head start on vacant dates.