The society’s long campaign to achieve legal status for humanist weddings came to a successful conclusion in June 2005. The first legal Humanist marriage anywhere in the British Isles took place on Saturday 18 June in the Mansion House at the Edinburgh Zoological Gardens.

 

The happy couple were Karen Watts and Martin Reijns. Ivan Middleton, one of the Society's most experienced Celebrants, conducted their wedding.

 

Martin and Karen said, "This is a great development for non-religious people who, like us, believe that marriage is more than just a legal bonding and therefore want a ceremony that's more personal than a standard civil ceremony. We wrote our own ceremony, which allowed us to express our thoughts and feelings freely. We're excited to be the first ones to be able to have a Humanist marriage ceremony that is legally binding."

Visit our ceremonies page for more about weddings and other humanist ceremonies.

 

Watch the BBC TV Report on the rise in popularity of Humanist Weddings in Scotland