Carol and Michaels Great Northern Hotel Wedding

Congratulations to Carol Mc Guinness and Michael Cleary who were married in St Patrick’s Church Ballyshannon on the 29th of August 2015 followed by a brilliant wedding reception for their families and friends in the beautiful Great Northern Hotel in Bundoran Co. Donegal. The morning of the 29th of August saw a beautiful day with a warm summer breeze and a great wedding unfold before it and it also happened to be exactly 22 years to the day that Carol and Michael first met in Peppies nightclub in Bundoran! I had an easy start to the day with a short trip to my hometown of Ballyshannon were Michael and his groomsmen Timmy, Damien and Darren were getting suited and booted. On my arrival at the house I came across Michael in the kitchen flat out doing the dishes! (see top row middle pic as proof) Now I’m not sure if Michael had spotted me pulling up outside and thought to himself he could gain brownie points for life if he had a few photos of him doing the dishes on the morning of the wedding or he was genuinely keeping the house neat and tidy but we will give him the benefit of the doubt. I had only planned to stay fifteen minutes with the boys but as Timmy was in the shower for an awfully long time we had half an hour with the lads and a more relaxed bunch I have never come across on a wedding day. A bottle of champagne was sent for and only the finest bottle Dicey Reilly had in stock came back – these boys know how to be good to themselves!  After leaving the boys we made our way up town to Chapel Street where Carol and her bridesmaids Sharon, Sandra and Leah were getting ready. On flower girl duty for the wedding was Carol and Michael’s beautiful daughter Lucy – Lucy was so excited about the day and it was fantastic how Carol and Michael included Lucy not only in the ceremony but in the whole day, she really was the star of the show. On video duty for the wedding day was Tony Keown from Garrison and it is always a pleasure to work alongside a real professional like Tony. At 1pm Carol and the girls only had to cross the road to St Patrick’s Church for the wedding ceremony and Fr Pat Mc Hugh was on hand to deliver a really beautiful personal wedding ceremony that had plenty of laughs and emotion. For the family photos we had the pleasure of using Mrs Crowe’s beautiful garden which is opposite the church and we made great use of her wonderful flower garden for our photos. The next stop before we got to the hotel was the cliff tops at Rougey. This spot is amazing for wedding photos and the views across the sand dunes and Donegal bay are second to none. After we wrapped up we made our way to the wedding reception in one of Donegal’s finest wedding venues the Great Northern Hotel. The speeches were fantastic and I had a hard job holding the camera steady as Timmy was holding nothing back in his speech about Michael. The Truetones were on the stage for 9pm and they had the dancefloor filled all evening and they even had a little help from Michael’s father – Michael Cleary Snr – who is also a well respected and talented musician. I would like to take this opportunity to wish Carol, Michael and Lucy the very best of everything that life has to offer and thank them for allowing me be part of their special day. Below is a short interview with the groom followed by some images from their beautiful wedding enjoy ……

 Wedding Cake:   Supplied by chief bridesmaid Sharon who works for O’ Hehirs Bakery

Wedding Flowers: Supplied by Bridesmaid Sandra who works in Mc Daids Flowers and Gifts in Ballyshannon

Wedding rings:  supplied by the Bride who works in Brittons Jewellers in Donegal Town.

Hair & Make up:   Jason Gordon from Gloss Hair Salon in Ballyshannon.

Church Music:   Niamh Currid and Anne Mc Caughey.

Band: The Ttuetones, Bundoran

Reception music: Michael Cleary Snr

DJ:  Brendan Rooney.

1) How did you meet and how did he propose?

We met in Peppies nightclub in Bundoran in 1993 and Carol fell at my feet!!

Click PLAY below to watch a Fusion Slideshow  of  Carol and Michaels Great Northern Hotel Wedding

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