A woman who paid £10,000 to marry herself has explained that she did so because she couldn’t find the right man.
Sarah Wilkinson, 42, said she wrote 14 vows for herself for the ceremony which took place at Harvest House, Felixstowe earlier this year.
Speaking to the BBC, Ms Wilkinson said it all started two years ago when she bought herself an engagement ring.
The credit controller added that things began to escalate from there as she began to consider marrying herself.
Ms Wilkinson said: “I’ve always wanted to wear the rock on the finger, it’s always been a thing. I hit 40 and was like, hmm, there’s not really any prospects about at the moment.
“We’ll give it a year and see what happens and then I’m just going to buy my own engagement ring.
“I’ve been saving for a long time for my wedding day and when you get to the point where you’re like, actually I might not have this with a partner by my side, I was like well why should I miss out on it anyway just because I don’t have that?”
Ms Wilkinson conceded that she was “slightly naïve as to how much it would actually be but at the end of the day that money was reserved for my wedding”.
She said: “That money was reserved for my wedding – it was a case of it’s there and why not use it for something I want to do.”
Ms Wilkinson explained that despite a few concerns, her friends and family were supportive of her decision.
She explained: “Everyone was really pleased, no one stopped smiling all day and everybody said what an amazing time they had. It couldn’t have worked out any better.
“It was a lovely day for me to be the centre of attention. The ceremony wasn’t an official wedding, but I had my wedding day.”
Ms Wilkinson’s friend, Katherine Cresswell, said: “As much as it was about Sarah, it was about bringing everyone together.
“There’s always a need to celebrate and I think we need it more than ever right now.”
Following the ceremony Ms Wilkinson said that while she is now married to herself, she hasn’t given up on meeting the man of her dreams.
She explained: “It was just a case of giving up on looking.”
