Success for wedding industry in the county

The Alnwick Garden, Woodhill Hall, in Otterburn, and Lucker-based Beau Monde, were named as overall winners at The English Wedding Awards 2017 – Chapter 2, which covers the North East, North West and Yorkshire.

The glitzy ceremony was staged in Manchester on Monday. Chapter 1 of the awards, for the East and West Midlands, East, South East, South West and London, was held on November 6 in Leicester.

This year, thousands of nominations were cast across England with the public voting for their favourites.

The Alnwick Garden took both the North East and overall title in the Romantic Wedding Venue of the Year category.

A Garden spokesman said: “Winning the North East and then the overall award is astounding. We are lucky to have two amazing venues – The Treehouse and The Garden itself.

“This will put Alnwick and the North East even more firmly on the map. Thank you to The Garden team and the community for their support.”

There was joy for Woodhill Hall, which was named Wedding Venue of the Year for the North East, as well as clinching the overall award.

On top of that, James Gray, who works at the venue, was awarded Wedding Coordinator of the Year.

Rachel Fenwick, marketing manager for Woodhill Hall – a 300-year-old manor house – said: “This is such a big honour. The team works tirelessly to run entirely exclusive and utterly unforgettable two-day weddings and it’s great to see the venue being recognised on a regional and national scale for how truly unique it is.”

Mr Gray said he was thrilled and overwhelmed at his award win and thanked all of the couples who took the time to vote for him.

Meanwhile, Beau Monde was named as the North East winner, as well as the overall winner, in the Hair and Make Up Specialist of the Year category.

Aimee Johnson, who runs Beau Monde, said: “We are ecstatic. We have only been open for 18 months and the business has gone from strength to strength.

“I would like to thank the amazing team for their hard work and the clients who have supported us.”