Dawn Harrison, 48, and Chris Harrison, 45, from Tottington in Bury, celebrated their marriage on Saturday (August 29) with a church service followed by a Courteeners gig at Wythenshawe Park, joined by 18 members of their wedding party.
The couple, who met at their local pub in 2011 and legally married in 2013, said they never had the wedding celebration they wanted because they had "no money - literally nothing" at the time. Instead, 13 years later, they decided to mark their marriage by doing something that felt more 'them'.
A wedding planned around the band
Dawn said: "When we got legally got married in 2013, we had no money - literally nothing. We just did the town hall and there was no do. We've wanted to have a proper wedding for ages but we didn't know how to go about it. Chris said to me, 'well what makes you the happiest?' I said 'honestly, my favourite thing to do is just be stood in a field with your favourite band and all your favourite people'. So he said 'let's do that then'."
The couple began planning their unusual wedding around the Courteeners' next outdoor gig, waiting around a year for the band to announce a show. "We thought maybe it was a bit crazy and we were being a bit silly, but it spiralled from there…When they announced Wythenshawe Park we thought that's it," Dawn said.
They booked a church service before heading to Carmelo's for an Italian, with 18 members of their wedding party - including their minister - then making their way to the gig. Their wedding was photographed by Livy Flinter, a wedding photographer from Ramsbottom, who was able to continue capturing the couple after the ceremony thanks to a photo pass for the event.
Fans' reaction 'overwhelmed' the couple
The couple expected to attract a few looks when they arrived at the gig in their wedding attire, but said they were "overwhelmed" by the reaction from fellow fans. Dawn said: "We knew people were going to look but we were so overwhelmed. When we got there, one of the ladies upgraded all of our guests to VIP. That was just gorgeous and we didn't expect anything like that."
"Courteeners fans are always good. We've seen them over 25 times and we've never had a bad concert. People were buying us drinks. We must have had about 200 selfies. It was so wholesome and nice. Everybody just fully embraced it and that made us even more special. It was amazing."
The band has been a constant throughout the couple's relationship after Chris introduced Dawn to their music. Dawn said: "They've just been there through the whole of our story. Every single song has a memory attached to it. Every car journey, every party, good times, bad times - they're just there. We love them. It was just a no brainer for us."
Matching tattoos and future gigs
The couple even got matching tattoos before their wedding of the lyrics 'This love will last forever' from the band's song 'Here Come the Young Men'. Dawn added: "But 'Take Over the World' is our favourite - our song, if you like."
While a Courteeners gig might not be everyone's idea of a wedding reception, Dawn said it was the perfect way for the couple to celebrate. She said: "I don't think you can beat the feeling of being in a field with your favourite band and singing with all the people that you love. You're not going to beat that in a hotel listening to speeches. Singing your heart out with your favourite band on, what beats that?"
The couple say they have "followed the band round everywhere for ages", with a gig at Manchester's Night and Day Cafe in April among their favourite shows. They are already looking forward to their next Courteeners fix, with the couple seeing the band again in November at one of their Liverpool shows.
