I Want to Marry You! [Scots in the Playground, help!]

[Ecalsneerg]

... hah, bet you thought this was a proposal thread. Mwahaha.

Anyway, I'm not the one proposing, but I wanna do the ceremony. Thing is, I have no idea how to go about getting ordained without doing it via the church.

So, people with more knowledge of UK law than I/better ability to research things online than I, how would I go about this?

[Quincunx]

Isn't it the wrong hour of the night to be asking law-heeding U.K. folk for advice? Check back in ten to twelve hours, I say.

[Berserk Monk]

... hah, bet you thought this was a proposal thread. Mwahaha.

Anyway, I'm not the one proposing, but I wanna do the ceremony. Thing is, I have no idea how to go about getting ordained without doing it via the church.

So, people with more knowledge of UK law than I/better ability to research things online than I, how would I go about this?

If you're a captain, can't you legal wed people at sea or on a boat? Not sure how much you like sailing, but just a thought.

[Jibar]

Isn't it the wrong hour of the night to be asking law-heeding U.K. folk for advice? Check back in ten to twelve hours, I say.

It's the wrong hour to get the sane ones who actually know what's going on.
My kind? Yeah. We're here.
I'll have a look for ye later and get back when I know.
Unless o'course someone beats me to the punch.

[Ecalsneerg]

Isn't it the wrong hour of the night to be asking law-heeding U.K. folk for advice? Check back in ten to twelve hours, I say.

By the request, it's probably inferrable that it doesn't need an answer ASAP. :smallwink:


If you're a captain, can't you legal wed people at sea or on a boat? Not sure how much you like sailing, but just a thought.

I don't think that's legal anymore. I recall reading of someone who got ordinated and bought a cruise ship just so people could get wedded at sea now.

[littlebottom]

only the best people are online from the uk at this time!

and the best option i can think of is the boat thing... that or some post order certificate or something crazy like that.

[KuReshtin]

The captain being able to perform marriages has never been allowed according to The Straight Dope (http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/546/are-ships-captains-allowed-to-marry-people-at-sea). So.. Urban myth, that one.


I have a slightly off-topic question to ask.

How come there are so many UK people on these boards that haven't noticed the UK itP Christmas Meet (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=7331911&postcount=166) thread?

[Green Bean]

Doing some quick Googling, it looks like it depends on how the couple plan to get married. If it's a Civil Union, a registrar performs the 'ceremony' (i.e. the couple proves they're both consenting adults). Unfortunately, you can't just become a registrar; they're typically full time government employees.

The only other people who can perform marriages are "authorized celebrants", typically religious ministers. If you look in the right places, you may be able to be ordained by mail, but obviously that isn't appropriate for everyone. Alternatively, the British Humanist Society offers non-religious celebrant training (http://www.humanism.org.uk/ceremonies/celebrant-training), though you will need to attend a three day course.

Edit: Of course, that's me being somewhat geographically narrow-minded. The above applies to England and Wales; Scotland and Northern Ireland would be slightly different.

[Thufir]

Isn't it the wrong hour of the night to be asking law-heeding U.K. folk for advice? Check back in ten to twelve hours, I say.

Actually, in my experience, a decent number of Britland playgrounders can most reliably be found online around midnight. During the day we actually have to do things.

Also, I support both the things KuReshtin said.

[Ecalsneerg]

Edit: Of course, that's me being somewhat geographically narrow-minded. The above applies to England and Wales; Scotland and Northern Ireland would be slightly different.
True, but knowing the word 'celebrant' seems to be helping my search, so it wasn't all in vain :P

Apparently Scotland is only one of 6 countries that let the Humanist Society perform legal weddings. Likely still not what I'm looking for, but the fact you can do it is promising for my search.

[Rettu Skcollob]

I ACCEPT

Oh... Oh, I see... Um... Damn.

[bosssmiley]

Doing some quick Googling, it looks like it depends on how the couple plan to get married. If it's a Civil Union, a registrar performs the 'ceremony' (i.e. the couple proves they're both consenting adults). Unfortunately, you can't just become a registrar; they're typically full time government employees.

The only other people who can perform marriages are "authorized celebrants", typically religious ministers. If you look in the right places, you may be able to be ordained by mail, but obviously that isn't appropriate for everyone. Alternatively, the British Humanist Society offers non-religious celebrant training (http://www.humanism.org.uk/ceremonies/celebrant-training), though you will need to attend a three day course.

Edit: Of course, that's me being somewhat geographically narrow-minded. The above applies to England and Wales; Scotland and Northern Ireland would be slightly different.

*cookie for the bear-riding ice-warrior*

[Green Bean]

True, but knowing the word 'celebrant' seems to be helping my search, so it wasn't all in vain :P

Apparently Scotland is only one of 6 countries that let the Humanist Society perform legal weddings. Likely still not what I'm looking for, but the fact you can do it is promising for my search.

The good news is, Scottish law doesn't actually differ in who can marry people, so it's still either a registrar or a celebrant. Also, Google turned up this (http://www.collegeofcelebrancy.co.uk/), which apparently offers courses in marriage and funeral celebrancy in person or by mail.

[kamikasei]

I was under the impression that you could just
a) go to a courthouse or town hall or whatever and register your marriage by signing the appropriate forms, at which point you're officially and legally married, and then
b) hold whatever ceremony you want, which doesn't require any kind of legally empowered celebrant, because the legal side of it is already sorted out, at which point you're unofficially married enough to give everyone an excuse to dance badly and get drunk?

[Green Bean]

I was under the impression that you could just
a) go to a courthouse or town hall or whatever and register your marriage by signing the appropriate forms, at which point you're officially and legally married, and then
b) hold whatever ceremony you want, which doesn't require any kind of legally empowered celebrant, because the legal side of it is already sorted out, at which point you're unofficially married enough to give everyone an excuse to dance badly and get drunk?

Yep, that's an option. My advice is only for if Ecalsneerg wants to perform the ceremony in a legal sense.

[Ecalsneerg]

I was under the impression that you could just
a) go to a courthouse or town hall or whatever and register your marriage by signing the appropriate forms, at which point you're officially and legally married, and then
That's Plan B.

b) hold whatever ceremony you want, which doesn't require any kind of legally empowered celebrant, because the legal side of it is already sorted out, at which point you're unofficially married enough to give everyone an excuse to dance badly and get drunk?
Excuse me? We're Scots. We don't need an excuse do dance badly and get drunk!

Thanks for the link, Green Bean, I'll have a read of that site.