Ollie and Matt
Ollie and Matt met in Perth back in 2013, only to find out that they had actually grown up in neighbouring suburbs on the other side of the world. Fast forward, and these two recently married in Fremantle, WA. When speaking of their wedding, the grooms said all they wanted was for their wedding to feel like a big dinner party with friends telling hilarious stories, flowing drinks and some questionable dancing.
Photographers 7 to 1 Photography and Celebrating Life Photography
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Mr T - How and when did you meet?
O - We met each other on Australia Day in 2013 at a bar in Perth. We were introduced by a mutual friend who was visiting from our hometown of Bristol. There was definitely chemistry between us and an immediate connection; conversation was easy and Matt had me laughing in no time.
“The experience of getting married was so incredible, words fail us when we’ve tried to explain it. ”
Mr T - Tell us a little about the earlier days of your relationship...
O - Both of us were born and raised in Bristol, England, and we grew up in neighbouring suburbs. We didn’t know each other while in Bristol, and moved to Perth at different times, Matt when he was 12, and I left when I was 21. We’re not huge believers in fate, but it’s slightly coincidental that our paths lead us to each other, on the opposite side of the world to where we’re from!
We started dating but soon after Matt went travelling for work for a few months. We kept in contact and as soon as he was back in Perth, we picked up where we left off, as we knew we had something special.
Mr T - What does Marriage mean to you?
O & M - For us, marriage is an adventure. It’s a commitment to life, the best that two people can find and bring out in each other.
We also feel that marriage isn’t one moment, it's every moment. Big ones like saying "I love you" for the first time, moving in together, getting engaged — but mostly a million little ones that come in between the big stuff. Falling asleep next to each other, making dinner together, walking our dogs every day, binge-watching Netflix shows, kissing each other goodbye when we leave for work. It’s these everyday moments that fuse together into one big experience.
Even though the experience of getting married was so incredible, words fail us when we’ve tried to explain it. That's just the way it is with love — it's meant to be felt, not described.
Mr T - Who proposed and how?
O - I knew from our early days of dating that I wanted to marry Matt. Even though neither of us are very traditional, I wanted to ask for his parents’ blessing first. They were so overcome with emotion and through sobs and tears, they gave us their blessing.
I told Matt that we were going out on a date, as he’d been pretty stressed at work and deserved to be spoilt. Little did he know that I’d been to Tiffany & Co the week before, and had a ring hidden in the house! Just before we left for dinner, I dropped to one knee and said “You’ve already made me the happiest man in the world. Will you continue this adventure with me as my husband?” There were more tears, but it was of course a big yes!
Mr T - When did you get married?
O & M - We had to plan the date strategically with all our families in the UK and here in Australia to ensure everyone could make it. After some careful calendar shuffling and diary planning, we settled on 30 March 2019.
Ollie & Matt’s story continues below ↓
Mr T - What was the main influence behind your wedding day?
O & M - From the outset, we wanted our wedding to be intimate but relaxed with as few traditional formalities as possible. We wanted it to be a big meal with friends, with hilarious stories, flowing drinks and some questionable dancing! We knew that white table cloths, starched napkins and chair covers weren’t for us. The venue we chose catered perfectly to what we had envisioned. Not only was the food incredible, but the whole space had character and life. We didn’t want to overdress the space either, so chose moody blooms for the flowers which complimented the venue. Our fabulous friend Marco, who is an interior designer, made the arrangements for us.
Mr T - What was the most important thing to you surrounding your wedding?
O & M - We knew the ceremony was going to be an emotional one, so we wanted the dinner, speeches and dancing to be as much fun as possible. You really can’t have a gay wedding without a drag queen, so we asked a close friend from New York (now living in Sydney) to MC for us. Diabolique showed up and turned it out! She was a gracious host with banter that our guests are still talking about. We also asked our DJ to play gay anthems (think Kylie, Cher, Mariah…) which meant the dancefloor was pumping all night. We knew it was a success when guests left the venue carrying their Louboutins in hand, nursing their sore dancing feet!
Mr T - Where did you find the bulk of your inspiration?
O & M - We found Guildhall online, which perfectly set the tone of the wedding we had in mind. It’s an old building that’s been lovingly renovated, still keeping the original charm but with some modern, eclectic elegance. We didn’t look through Pinterest or Instagram, but took our lead from the feel of the venue.
Mr T - How did you choose your suppliers?
O & M - We are incredibly lucky to have a big group of friends who work in the industry, which meant we were able to hire them to help with the wedding.
Mr T - Any standout suppliers?
O & M - The photographers were incredible and really delivered what we were looking for. We used Kelly and Emma from 7 to 1 Photography and Celebrating Life Photography. They were able to capture the day in a photojournalistic style rather than staged scenes, which when looking through the photos, they really tell the story of how the day unfolded.
Mr T - Did you find it difficult to translate more common traditions into a ‘same-sex’ wedding?
O & M - We were very relaxed about traditions and felt we could make the wedding more personal to us. We didn’t have groomsmen or a wedding party as we felt all of our guests were important and didn’t want anyone to feel left out. We also wanted to walk each other down the aisle, as we felt this was a journey we were taking together, side by side.
Mr T - What was the most difficult thing about planning your wedding?
O & M - We’d struggle to find something that was difficult, the whole process for us was an incredible journey. I think this is partly because we absolved ourselves of the pressure of having to have the “perfect” wedding. We wanted it to be an enjoyable experience for everyone, so we were relaxed. We had faith in our suppliers and knew that everything would turn out well in the end.
Mr T - Where did you spend your honeymoon?
O & M - Our honeymoon is booked for later this month (May), we’re cruising around the Mediterranean, stopping off in Italy, Malta, Croatia, Montenegro and Greece.
Mr T - Any advice for other couples planning their day and finding it difficult to navigate the journey?
O & M - The challenging moments are all part of the journey. Make sure you take time out to check-in with your partner and talk about where you’re at. Make your own rules about what you want the wedding to be, and don’t get too caught up in the small stuff.
Suppliers
Photographers 7 to 1 Photography and Celebrating Life Photography
Videographer StoryOne
Ceremony and Reception Venue Guildhall, North Fremantle
Suits Politix
Flowers Octaviano Interior Design
Stationery Shutterfly
Celebrant Debra Lievense – Civil Marriage Celebrant
Furniture Arbour by Event Style
Makeup Holly Garvey
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