You might call me a jack of all trades. Over the years, I’ve worked in more roles than I can list on one hand, but every single one has involved people, stories and always giving it my all in every situation. Now I get to do all three and make a difference in your life.
Ceremonies I create
How I Ended Up Here
The short version is, I got chatting to a stranger at a barbecue.
The longer version is, the stranger was my partner's cousin's husband's brother's wife (you might want to read that one twice), she works as a registrar for her local council, and she planted the seed. I looked into being a registrar and decided it wasn't for me. Then I looked into celebrancy. I picked it up, put it down, picked it up again, went to three weddings in a year, and somewhere along the way realised I could absolutely stand up there and tell two people's love story in front of everyone they care about.
The rest, as they say, is history.
The Roles That Got Me Ready For This One
A Lifetime Of Care
I joined the Armed Forces at 18. After that I worked in the security department at Harrods (and yes, I have seen a few things). Then I worked with children with disabilities, including hearing-impaired pupils in a deaf school as a British Sign Language communicator. Alongside that I taught swimming to anyone aged five and up, which gave me the kind of joy you can't really describe.
I went on to be a self-employed driving instructor (nerves of steel, supposedly), a Police Community Support Officer with my local force, and for the last 13 years I've worked in the charity sector. Working for charities gave me a fantastic opportunity to be visible in the local community telling stories that pulled on heartstrings and raised vital funds.
Every single one of those jobs taught me how to read a room, hold space for people on a wobbly day, and make strangers feel comfortable within five minutes. Turns out that's exactly the job description for a celebrant.
The Tad Eccentric Bit
I was always the first to volunteer for the mascot costume. I've been a dolphin, a pig, an elephant, a minion and Eddie the Eagle at Essex County Cricket Club on a big match day. I went to my local Toastmasters before COVID and was one of the few in the group who genuinely loved standing up in front of people. I volunteered at the local library to read stories to preschoolers, until COVID closed everything down and that experience got snatched away.
I’m a natural storyteller. I've been told that more times than I can count. It's the thing I'm proudest of, and it's the thing I bring to every ceremony I write.
When I'm Not Celebrating
I'm a bit of an outdoor girl, if "a bit" is the right word for someone who has cycled part of the Rift Valley in Kenya for breast, cervical and ovarian cancer (the Kenyan running team whizzed past us going up a hill that felt like cycling through treacle, and I'm still laughing about it), swum a distance in the Serpentine in Hyde Park for Alzheimer's, abseiled down the ArcelorMittal Orbit in Stratford, jumped out of a plane for my local hospice, and went husky sledding and skidooing in Svalbard.
These days I settle for saunas with cold dips, outdoor swimming, paddleboarding, long walks in the Norfolk woodlands, the glorious sandy beaches up the coast, a bit of pottering in the garden, and a glass of red in the summer house.
I live in Norwich with my partner. I'm laid back, bubbly, and there is genuinely not a formal bone in my body.