Rossendale couple reschedule wedding for Olympic torch relay (From Western Telegraph)

Rossendale couple reschedule wedding for Olympic torch relay

2:30pm Wednesday 20th June 2012 in London Olympics 2012 - Latest News By Chris Adams

AN East Lancashire couple are set to prove they are ‘flaming mad’ about each other — by moving their wedding forward as they hope to be pictured with the Olympic torch.

Building firm manager Darren Heys, from Lumb in Rossendale and his bride-to-be Catherine Lloyd will be married in St James The Less RC church in Rawtenstall on Saturday, just in time to see the torch as it heads down Burnley Road.

The couple had planned for their big day to begin at 12.30pm but moved the ceremony forward after learning it would clash with the Olympic procession.

Catherine, a financial services worker from Cliviger near Burnley, said she had no hesitation in changing the time of her nuptials to 11.45am.

She said: “We booked the church for our wedding 18 months ago, long before details of the relay were announced. The torch is due to come past at 1.18pm, which would have been right in the middle of our wedding!

“It was too late to change our wedding date altogether because most of the arrangements had been made.”

She said the church’s Canon David Lupton and wedding photographer David Barry had suggested bringing the timings forward, to ‘make the torch relay part of our day, rather than a distraction’.

“The torch could have taken the shine off our big day but Canon Lupton David have been brilliant,” she said. “Now we can enjoy the day and the torch could actually make it extra special.”

Rawtenstall-based David plans to have every angle covered.

He said: “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and we’ve literally got one chance to get the shot so we have to get it right.

“We requested permission for the torch to stop but we were told that wasn’t possible. We’ve therefore got to snap it on the move instead, which means timing is everything.

“I’ve never done anything like this before and I will be under more pressure than normal. If we don’t get that shot then it’s not as if we can re-shoot it!.”