Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

Posted by
 | Photography by York Place Studios
Gemma John 149 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)
Photos by York Place Studios

Offbeat partner: Gemma Wood

Offbeat partner: John

Date and location of wedding: The Ravenswood, Sharpthorne, UK — October 5, 2019

Our offbeat wedding at a glance: We decided to have a Monty Python-themed wedding on the 50th anniversary of the first episode (5th October 1969) as we are considered the biggest fans of the TV show in the UK. John even proposed in front of Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam on my birthday.

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

We decided to create a Python world filled with props, posters, sketches, and even a "Silly Party" election! And to make the day even more special, "seventh" Python Carol Cleveland even made a surprise appearance.

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

Luckily I'm a graphic designer and was able to showcase sketches via posters, books, the invitation, etc. We even managed a lot of DIY including creating a 'St Looney Up-The-Cream-Bun-And-Jam' church sign from scratch.

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

Tell us about the ceremony:
With red roses in reference to the opening credits of the show, I walked down the aisle to 'The Liberty Bell' (Monty Python theme tune) and arrived next to John just as you heard the sound of a fart.

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

For our first hymn, we sang 'All Things Dull and Ugly', which had the guests in stitches. The ceremony books were designed to look like 'Monty Python's Big Red Book' but was changed to 'John and Gemma's Big Wed Book.' When the registrar asked if anyone objected to the marriage, and no one replied, she said, "I only ask because no one expects the Spanish Inquisition."

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

When John was asked, "Do you take this woman to be your wife?" he replied "Perhaps" which brought the house down. Gemma replied "Oh, say you will!" He replied "Oh, alright then."

The ring holder was the Holy Hand Grenade, of course, and the signing of the register was signed to the 'Intermission music' from Monty Python and The Holy Grail.

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)Gemma John 14 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

All this was conducted under a pointing Hand of God and sign which read "This is supposed to be a happy occasion. Let's not bicker and argue about who killed who." Straight after the ceremony, John carried me out of the room whilst the guests were led into a second room where they watched a prerecorded video of John carrying me through various places, including Ealing High Street, before we entered the room to recreate Monty Python's "The Mattress Sketch" alongside the best man and friends. We even got everyone to sing Jerusalem.

Gemma John 56 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 42 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 41 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 27 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Tell us about the reception:
The tables were themed around the Silly Elections (the save the date and wedding invites were designed around the concept of "Join The Wood Party" as 'Wood' was our married name and also, coincidentally, featured in a Python sketch). So every guest had a rosette with their name on and the tables were all named after different candidates.

Gemma John 18 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 63 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

When we arrived at our table we noticed that Carol Cleveland was sitting at the next table! We couldn't believe it! A real Python at our wedding! It just made our day even more special.

Gemma John 655 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 500 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 515 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 532 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 550 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 553 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

After a Python-themed wedding breakfast (salmon mousse, strawberry tart without so much rat in it and, of course, spam, spam, spam!) we did our speeches behind a six-foot dead parrot, as you do. The groom and friends then changed in order to perform "Sit on my Face" in barber's clothes and bared their bottoms.

Gemma John 146 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 145 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

3 1 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Instead of cutting the cake (which was themed around the Lumberjack Sketch and the toppers were the bride and groom dressed as the lumberjack and his best girly by his side), we SQUASHED it with a foot in homage to the opening titles. Then we danced under a 16-ton weight that was suspended from the ceiling, in front of an albatross and a neon sign saying 'Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life.' It was the best day of our lives.

6 1 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

4 2 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

What was the most important lesson you learned from your wedding?
I guess our biggest challenge was to create a themed wedding without it looking “tacky” (ed. note: everything is tacky). We knew that theming a wedding based on a comedy show that a lot of our guests hadn't seen could be an embarrassing failure. So, we decided to make it SO big and SO fun that it would be impossible to not get some enjoyment from the day. We also made sure that everything we were going to do was very professional (quality flowers, nice glassware/cutlery, etc.) to make the guests feel special.

Gemma John 328 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 149 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 160 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 165 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Neither of us are fans of the traditional white wedding and so we just focused on making it fun, brightly coloured, and different — basically a Monty Python event with a wedding thrown in. Our only advice is if you want silly-themed wedding then do a silly-themed wedding. We didn't care about tradition and we absolutely loved every second of it.

Gemma John 748 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

1 1 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 693 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Gemma John 687 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Vendors

Venue: The Ravenswood • Photographers: York Place Studios• Videographer: Green Biscuit • Dead Parrot/16 Ton Weight props: Hotwire Studios • Albatross/Fish props: Miles Ascough • Neon Sign: Weon Light • Hand of God: Onward Display
"Happy Occasion" Calligraphy: Kalidariart • Florist: Lily Lupin • Cake: Fat Cakes • Glassware/Cutlery: Classic Crockery • Makeup/Hair: Stephanie Dorelli • Invites/Posters/Books/Graphics: The bride, Gemma

Gallery

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Meet our fave wedding vendors

Comments on Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition (or this utterly bonkers Monty Python-themed wedding!)

  1. This is amazing! So much detail, so much fun, so much love. Even if you weren’t a big Monty Python fan this would be a fantastic wedding to attend. The recreation of the mattress sketch was superbly done, it must have taken a lot of practice and it clearly paid off. I love this whole wedding!

  2. We didn’t know what FOMO was until we saw the pictures of this wedding! the graphics and the details in the wedding were AMAZING! Taking the couples favorite motion picture and turning into an experience that all the guests can enjoy is what its all about when you think of personalization.

  3. I am sooo happpy to be a modest part of this fabulous, and spectacular, and neverseen wedding!! Happy anniversary, guys!!!!!!

Comments are closed.