‘Stranded Couple Take Vows Over Internet’

I must have made God laugh yesterday – my plans were dashed because I wasn’t able to fly home. Instead, I spent hours on the phone cancelling arrangements and saying in a matter-of-fact voice ‘well, whenever the volcano stops spouting then I’ll book a new flight. We'll see what the volcano is up to next week…’  I missed out on a get-together, a trip to the sea and a meeting with my bank. 

These trivialities pale in comparison to the couple that I read about on MSN. The couple were stranded in Dubai, unable to get a plane to the UK for their wedding reception. The wedding guests assembled in Ealing, West London, and the exchange of vows still went ahead, and the wedding guests were able to see the ceremony (in Dubai), courtesy of Skype.

Could this become more common? Far-flung weddings where parents and guests watch the nuptials with the aid of Skype? It would make a good platform for the greens, they might include in their election manifesto, ‘to reduce carbon emissions, we urge voters to consider the environment before they fly huge distances for a wedding ceremony. Anyway, why travel when you can skype-it?’

I re-produce the MSN report in full:

Wedding guests had to watch a bride and groom take their vows over an internet connection after the happy couple were left stranded by the closure of Britain's airspace. Sean Murtagh, 24, who is originally from west London, and his new wife Natalie, a 30-year-old Australian, were flying back to the UK from their home in Brisbane for Saturday's ceremony.  The couple married at a civil ceremony in Brisbane three weeks ago and were holding a humanist ceremony for family and friends in the UK. Sean's parents and Natalie's mother made it from Australia to London in time but the newlyweds found themselves stranded when they changed planes at Dubai on Thursday. It looked like their plans were in ruins until the couple decided to use Skype to let the ceremony go ahead as their guests gathered in Ealing, west London. The couple asked staff at the Millennium Airport Hotel in Dubai if they could use a laptop in their room, but staff instead became the couple's wedding planners."They have decorated the lobby of the hotel. They made us a three tier wedding cake, set up a laptop with Skype and a projector," said Mr Murtagh. "It's spellbinding the amount they have done for us. It's been an incredible day. We were never going to forget it anyway but we certainly won't forget it now." The couple's parents had brought their wedding outfits to the UK so Mr Murtagh borrowed a shirt, trousers, jacket and even cufflinks for the celebration, while the bride wore a black, green and blue dress which she had packed for their short honeymoon in Singapore on their way to the UK.

http://tech.uk.msn.com/news/articles.aspx?cp-documentid=153073472