London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 10, 2026

Covid: 'We organised our wedding in two hours to beat tier 4'

Covid: 'We organised our wedding in two hours to beat tier 4'

A couple rearranged their wedding in just two hours to ensure they tied the knot before London went into tier four.

Chloe Collins, 31, and Jamie Collins, 29, were due to marry on 6 September, but had reorganised three times due to changing coronavirus restrictions.

Mrs Collins said "our hearts sank" when Boris Johnson announced on Saturday a new tier-four lockdown across south-east England would start on Sunday.

The couple were married at 22:00 GMT on Saturday at Edgware United Synagogue.

"I've never in my life felt so much love and felt so grateful," Mrs Collins, a lettings negotiator, said.

The couple were allowed 15 guests but "over 100 people logged on to Zoom to watch us".

"We felt the love, and it felt like they were there," Mrs Collins said.


The couple were married at Edgware United Synagogue

Estate agent Mr Collins said their wedding had been planned with 130 guests at a country estate-turned-hotel in Watford.

When coronavirus restrictions meant only 15 guests could attend weddings, the couple moved venue and planned for a wedding on 22 November.

They then rearranged for 20 December, after a four week-England wide lockdown came into force through November.

Mrs Collins said she "felt physically sick" as the prime minister announced new tier-four restrictions on Saturday afternoon.

"Our rabbi had the idea to bring the wedding forward," Mr Collins said.

"We just started calling people to see what we could do, and the more calls we made the more people said 'yes'.

"It was a miracle that it just kind of came together. It felt like a dream. Some people take years to plan a wedding, but we did it in two hours."

Mr Collins's best man drove more than two hours to attend the wedding, before "getting back in his car and driving home", the couple said.

'Nice news'


Under tier-four guidelines, weddings and civil partnerships are only allowed under "exceptional circumstances", such as if one partner is seriously ill and not expected to recover.

Since the wedding, the couple, from Watford, have been inundated with messages.

"I've been welling up with messages from people who aren't my close friends saying it was amazing," Mrs Collins said.

"I think it's just nice to hear nice news for a change."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Buckingham Palace Says Prince Harry and Meghan Will Not Resume Official Royal Duties
UK Treasury Faces Calls to Scrap £100,000 Childcare Support Threshold
Trades Union Congress Urges Labour Government to Rewrite Migration Policy
Riot Police Deployed After Anti-Migrant Protests Turn Violent in Portsmouth
UK Considers Replacing Some Disability Cash Payments With Direct Services
JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon Warns UK Chancellor Against Higher Banking Taxes
UK Announces New Sanctions Targeting Israeli Settlements in West Bank
Metropolitan Police Investigate Alleged Illegal Donations to Reform UK
UK Charges Wiltshire Man With Assisting Russian Intelligence
UK Orders Urgent Review After Air Traffic Failure Cancels More Than 2,000 Flights
Merz Rebukes AfD Expansion in Saxony-Anhalt
King Charles Confirms Prince Harry and Meghan Will Remain Private Citizens
Labour Selects Former Child Refugee for By-Election in Keir Starmer’s Former Seat
Foreign Private Equity Accelerates Takeovers of London-Listed Industrial Companies
NHS Maternity Care Faces Scrutiny Over Support for Mothers After Caesarean Births
BBC Warns Staff Strikes Are Likely Amid Job Cuts and Programme Cancellations
English Housing Affordability Improves to Best Level in More Than a Decade
UK Health Commission Proposes Framework for Wider AI Adoption Across NHS
Labour Faces Pressure for Wealth Tax Ahead of Autumn Budget
Metropolitan Police Open Criminal Investigation Into Alleged Foreign Donations to Reform UK
UK Police Deploy Riot Officers After Anti-Immigration Unrest in Portsmouth and Dover
UK Defends Sanctions on Israeli Settlements Despite Diplomatic Retaliation
UK Air Traffic Control Failure Cancels More Than 1,000 Flights and Disrupts 65,000 Passengers
Compass Urges £10 Million Wealth Tax and Public Ownership Ahead of UK Autumn Budget
UK Government’s Devolution Plans Face House of Lords Scrutiny
Maldives Seeks New Chagos Sovereignty Talks With UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham
UK Airports Face Continuing Disruption After National Air Traffic Control Failure
UK Bans Imports From Israeli Settlements and Expands Sanctions on Iran
British Chambers of Commerce Forecasts UK Growth of 1% as Investment Remains Weak
UK Suspends Local Government Reorganisation Decisions and Cancels Planned Shadow Authority Polls
UK Parliament Opens Inquiry Into Gaps in Climate Change Preparedness
Andy Burnham and Xi Jinping Hold Talks on Trade, Security and British Consular Cases
UK Joins France, Canada and Other Nations in Measures Against Israeli West Bank Settlements
UK Announces New Sanctions Targeting Iranian Nuclear and Military Networks
British Chambers of Commerce Calls for Business Rate Reform and Productivity Support
UK Farmers Warn Dry Summer Could Reduce Crop Yields and Push Up Food Prices
UK Rail Networks Hit by Widespread Delays After Major Signalling Failures
Matt Clifford Resigns as ARIA Chair After Conflict-of-Interest Scrutiny
UK and France Say Joint Border Operations Have Prevented More Than 48,000 Irregular Channel Crossings
UK Core Inflation Remains Above Expectations as Utility and Commodity Costs Stay Elevated
Jaguar Land Rover Considers Up to 4,000 UK Job Cuts Amid Automotive Industry Pressure
UK Government Pauses Local Authority Reorganisation for Legal Review
UK Public Borrowing Reaches £1.8 Billion in July, Adding Pressure Before Autumn Budget
Chancellor John Healey Puts Regional Devolution and Fiscal Discipline at Heart of UK Growth Plan
Counter-Terrorism Police Lead Salford Investigation After Two Teenagers Charged
UK Rejects Financial Reparations for Transatlantic Slavery
UK and Egypt Step Up Diplomacy Over Escalating West Bank Tensions
UK Pauses Council Reorganisation Across Four English Counties
Jaguar Land Rover Plans 4,000 Job Cuts in Major UK Restructuring
UK Unveils Planning and Regulatory Overhaul to Speed Infrastructure and Economic Growth
×