I do love a venue with a nice bit of history attached to it and the Dickens Inn certainly has that. As far as we know it dates back to the 18th Century & had to up sticks and move its location once upon a time due to housing developments.
Today, you’ll find it located near Tower Bridge, the Tower of London and the Shard right next to the river Thames. It has become one of the most successful pubs in the city with one critic describing the Dickens Inn as “the most atmospheric spot in the whole of London”.
I knew this would be a special wedding in the most wonderful location – a wedding photographers dream you could say.
We arranged to meet at the Dickens Inn for a pre wedding consultation and a good look around. One thing you’ll notice when you arrive is the buzz and gentle hum of people enjoying the views of the docks that are directly opposite the venue.
Francis and Zee are a lovely international couple (Groom- Irish, Bride- Chinese) that said they were up for anything when it came to the wedding day and we were bouncing some ideas off of each other, which started to create excitement as we thought through the possibilities.
THE DICKENS INN FEATURED WEDDING
The time had come for Francis & zee to tie the knot & it started in an unusual & unexpected way. Chinese tradition says that the groom has to perform a series of fun acts that need to meet the standards of the bride’s family to be allowed to get married. We had blindfolded drawings, building famous landmarks from marshmallows and toothpicks through to charades and unsavory food tasting. It was a fantastic icebreaker for all those in the room that were shy of the camera.
All this went on while Zee (bride) was getting ready upstairs in her traditional Chinese attire. Should Francis pass the test, he could be allowed to enter the quarters of his bride-to-be and whisk her away down the aisle. Luckily for him (and us), he did pass the test and the morning section of the day was a success.
We finished things off with another tradition (Chinese tea) and then made a little detour in a black cab to the Nobu Hotel in Shoreditch for change of clothes.
The Chinese part of the wedding had now been replaced with the traditional English celebrations that I for one was more accustomed to.
We had a fairytale white wedding dress for Zee and the lads opted for matching suits and braces.
It was a quick drop of whisky for Francis and his best friends at the bar while Zee jumped back in the cab and headed for The Dickens Inn.
The ceremony went without a hitch and before you knew it, the couple was drinking champagne with their wedding guests in a special designated area reserved for Francis and Zee.
It was time to go under cover and capture some of the characters in the crowd. I love picking off personalities and moments when people least expect it. Those natural shots always make for the best images on the day.
As the evening approached, the staff at the Dickens Inn prepared the room for wedding breakfast. The couple and I had discussed going down to Tower Bridge to take some nice shots and utilize the gorgeous location. I bought a bottle of champagne for Francis and Zee to enjoy but forgot the glasses 🙂
I made a mad dash into a restaurant and asked if I could borrow 2 glasses so that we could achieve this shot I had in mind. That duly obliged and the results were amazing by the river Thames. A big shout out to the restaurant for helping me out big time. I really appreciate it.
We headed back to the venue with some emotional and funny speeches and some Irish dancing to kick the evening off.
Francis and Zee’s big day had come to and end and were now Mr and Mrs.
Another wedding at the Dickens Inn, London was a success and comes highly recommended if you’re thinking of booking this for your wedding day.
Feel free to get in touch with them here to enquire: https://www.dickensinn.co.uk/weddings/
Thanks for reading as always. My blog page is here if you wanted to view more of my adventures: https://chriswoodmanphotography.co.uk/blog/
Until next time,
Take care
-Chris
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