Wedding of the Week: Secondary school teachers living in Cork tie the knot

A CORK couple who met as secondary school teachers fresh out of college were married recently.

Paul Costello and Rebecca Lawlor live outside Innishannon.

The bride is originally from Bandon, while Paul is from Tinryland in Carlow.

They feature in our Wedding of the Week.

Recalling how they first met, Paul said: “We met as secondary school teachers in London fresh out of college.

“We went through the same agency for the job, and Rebecca was my liaison to help get settled in the school.”

The couple got engaged in October, 2019, at the top of a hike in the Seychelles during a holiday towards the end of their teaching time in the Middle East.

They were married in the Oriel House Hotel, Ballincollig, in Spiritual Ceremony on July 29, 2023.

The couple were joined by family on the day, including Timmy and Breda, Rebecca’s grandparents, who were key guests.

The bridal party consisted of chief bridesmaid and sister, Justine Lawlor.

The best man was Paul’s brother Darren Costello.

Regarding the ceremony, Paul said: “We have to mention the outstanding Dan Collins of Spiritual Ceremonies for his time, patience, and guidance.

“We performed a humanist ceremony, and included a wine box closing as part of this. This section included placing a wine bottle into a box along with letters we had written for each other. 

Both the wine and letters would be opened on our first anniversary to read through the goals we set and reasons we wanted to marry one another.

The reception was also at the Oriel House Hotel in their excellent function room. The couple were full of praise for the hotel’s Kirsty Long and staff.

The cake was by Cakes by Miriam, and the wedding car was chauffeured by Rebecca’s uncle John Lawlor, who treated the couple to luxury and comfort on the day.

Fiona Kennedy performed for the ceremony, during the reception and meal. While the band was Off The Record. The first dance was Footloose by Kenny Loggins.

As to the memorable thing about the day? Paul said: “The reveal. We did our first reveal in our bridal suite with just ourselves and got to experience that bit of extra time and joy before our photos in Blarney Castle and ceremony later in the day.”

The couple would like to thank photographer Kathryn O’Shea and videographer, Gordon Falvery of WedFilms.