A couple who arrived at their hotel wedding in a breakdown truck after meeting at the side of the road have been given the honour of opening the hotel’s new bridal suite.
Natalie and Gareth Down recently cut the ribbon on the newly-refurbished suite at Bournemouth’s Large Hotel of the Year, the Marsham Court.
But they were not alone for their visit.
After six years of gruelling fertility treatment, including three IVF attempts, Natalie is pregnant with their ‘miracle’ son – and he is due on their wedding anniversary.
Natalie, 31 and Gareth, 29, from Weymouth, married at the Marsham Court Hotel in Russell Cotes Road on 11 May 2010, after meeting when Gareth attended Natalie’s broken down car.
Natalie was transported to their wedding in the very breakdown truck that Gareth used to rescue her.
In 2014 the couple were chosen as one of five couples to win a romantic wedding renewal ceremony at the Marsham Court, after Natalie revealed their heart breaking struggle to conceive.
Natalie, a veterinary nurse at Vets for Pets in Weymouth, explained: “We tried to conceive naturally for two years before being referred to a specialist and then we had six years of fertility treatments – seven intrauterine inseminations and three IVF attempts.
“We lost three babies (one singleton and then twins early on) before conceiving our son Reece on our last attempt at IVF.
“We were about to give up, so he really is a miracle baby and in an extra twist he is due on our sixth wedding anniversary.”
Gareth, who is now the workshop manager at CW Motorcycles in Dorchester, said: “When Rosie and her team at the Marsham Court contacted us to say they wanted us to officially open their new bridal suite we felt really honoured.
“The hotel has many happy memories for us and we had a lovely meal in the restaurant before sleeping in their gorgeous suite, which we made the most of as we have many sleepless nights ahead of us!”
The Marsham Court’s newly-refurbished bridal suite provides sumptuous accommodation for couples marrying at the hotel and features unique decor by Caroline Harris of See-Saw Designs in Poole.
Rosie Wallace, Director of the Marsham Court Hotel, said: “We were over the moon when we learned Natalie and Gareth are to become parents and when we found out the baby is due on their anniversary it seemed only right that they should be the ones to officially open our new bridal suite.
“It’s a real privilege to have hosted some of their most important milestones as a couple and we are now looking forward to meeting baby Reece. Who knows? we may even host his first birthday party!”
