A wedding celebrant has won a top award for being the quirkiest with her inclusive services.
Michelle Taylor, 57, is a celebrant based in Lawford who was a double winner at the Quirky Weddings Awards, which took place at Just Josephine Night club in Birmingham on November 21.
The event was hosted by celebrant Martin Fox-Roberts – whose alter ego is drag queen Martia Hurtz
Michelle said: “I really like having the wedding supplies for quirky weddings, people really want to personalise it and put their own geeky, nerdy stamp on things.
“There are very alternative outfits and jewellery, as well as the celebrants who play on the darker side of life, working with people who don’t care what people think of them and are not ashamed to be different - not ashamed to express themselves in different ways.”
Michelle won both ‘Most Unique Celebrant’ and the top prize ‘Quirkiest Of Them All’.
She said it was “not expected at all”.
Michelle's two wins show she is fulfilling her boast of offering “ceremonies for the discerning geek” - reflected in her numerous science fiction, fantasy, and fiction weddings.
Michelle, who also teaches other celebrants, said the area is changing with “more and more houses”, meaning there’s more people who adopt alternative lifestyles such as paganism.
She said: “I do vow-writing workshops. At the time of the zombie show The Walking Dead, there was a vow where one said if one of them got bitten in the zombie apocalypse they would bite the other so they could both be zombies.
“Another promised to pay attention more to his wife than his X-box.”
She added: “It’s best to have weddings with tears and laughter.
“At the end, you are there to celebrate love and how unique each partnership is and to put fun in the ceremony.
"It’s about being inclusive and sustainable – and allowing people to be people."
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