Jiggered Head to England for Wedding

When Lucy heard Jiggered Ceilidh Band at a large Gala Dinner in October 2011 she decided they were the band she wanted to play at her wedding to Roger. They were getting married at Lumley Castle (the tagline is “no ordinary venue” and we can vouch for that!).A roadtrip was in order!!

As ever, Jenny brought her own bit of drama to proceedings. While Ewan, Susan and I drove down to Lumley Castle (it’s in Chester-le-Street, between Newcastle and Durham), Jenny decided at the last minute to take the train. Her bargain £20 train ticket would get her from Edinburgh to Chester-le-Street but she missed it and had to buy a £50 ticket for the next train. Then of course she didn’t have any way of getting from the station to the Castle…so she hitched a lift!

Meanwhile, the rest of us made it to Chester-le-Street and visited a chippy for dinner (a place where the locals would treat themselves to a delicacy I’d never heard of: a bag of batter). We took the chips to the castle and the duty manager allowed us to use a cosy wee quaint conference room called The Bede…Then the fireworks started 😉

You never know exactly how a crowd down in England will respond to ceilidh but Lucy and Roger’s guests were a great bunch and we never had to coax them onto the floor- they were keen to try all the dances.

At the break, guests tucked into the CHEESE wedding cake. I did not.

We also excahnged our Secret Santa gifts. I say “Secret” Santa…I’ve yet to take part in a Secret Santa arrangement which didn’t end in everyone figuring out “who bought for who”! Ewan got Stick With Jesus drumsticks which led to a nonsense conversation where we branded our own  Christian-themed musical accessories (Stick With Jesus Drumsticks, Jesus Picked Me Plectrums, Jesus is the Key Piano cover, Jesus: The Resin for the Season Violin Resin). Puns over it was time for a lively second half and the long drive home to Scotland.

Next up? Hogmanay @ Gleddoch tomorrow.