Themed wedding for bus enthusiasts

Mark Hayes, from Nottingham, married his partner of nine years, Kelly, at St Mary’s Church in Sutton-in-Ashfield in June.

The day took place with the backdrop of Stagecoach East Midlands’ Skegness Seasiders character buses.

The tables at their wedding reception were named after the award-winning Skegness Seasiders, pictures of the character buses were used for decoration and bus goody bags given to children.

Mark, 37, got in touch with Stagecoach to ask if the Seasiders could be included in their wedding because of his life-long interest in the company’s buses.

Mark said: “I started liking buses at a very young age and can remember running to the window to see buses going past my home in Skegby when I was young.

“In my teens, I started going on days out on the buses in the East Midlands area and got to know all the different routes.”

The couple first met in 2003 when they both worked at a mail-sorting factory. Kelly, 32, had planned a holiday to Ibiza with some friends but she invited Mark along instead when her friends backed out.

They have been dating ever since and in May 2015 started planning to get married.

Being a bus enthusiast, Mark wanted to incorporate the Skegness Seasiders, whose seaside-themed characters include Rocky, Candy and Shelly, into the wedding. He even runs a Facebook group for fellow bus fans called Stagecoach UK Enthusiasts.

Mark added: “Being a massive fan, I couldn’t think of anything more perfect then having the colourful Seasiders on our wedding tables. All the guests loved them and thought they were very unique.”

Michelle Hargreaves, managing director of Stagecoach East Midlands, said: “When I received Mark’s email about wanting to use the Seasiders in his and Kelly’s wedding, I was thrilled.

“It’s such a great idea and I’m so glad the day went so well.

“We were more than happy to lend the characters for the couple’s special day and Stagecoach would like to congratulate Mark and Kelly on their marriage.”