Follow the wedding plans of primary school teacher Niamh Coupar and mechanical engineer Josh Schofield who are marrying in May 2026 at Dunglass Estate in Dunbar
Niamh and Josh basking in that post-engagement glow
16 months to go! Niamh Coupar and Josh Schofield are marrying in May 2026 at Dunglass Estate in Dunbar
November 2024 update – engagement story and viewing and booking venues
Josh and I have been together for almost six years, and in my head, we’ve practically been engaged for three of those!
We met in 2019, thanks to a little app called Tinder. I would love to say it was match at first sight, but I did in fact play hard to get. Josh always says this is why the proposal took so long. I’m sure it will be a key topic in his speech!
Robert the Bruce may be spinning in his grave, but Josh is from England and I am from Scotland!
Despite the battles between the countries, we’ve always agreed to get married in Scotland. In the years we’ve been together, we’ve been on various holidays, bought a house in Manchester and even become dog parents. It’s crazy to think we’ll be tying the knot in less than two years!
Before we were even engaged, Josh and I would spend our Friday nights with a takeaway discussing our ideal wedding. As his family are all from Manchester, we agreed to have ‘a big fat Scottish wedding’ – a day filled with bagpipes, tablet and even a ceilidh!
Discover the legalities of getting married in Scotland here
We jetted off to Mexico in August this year, which is a place we had planned visit right from the start of our relationship. Covid got in the way, though, and we never got round to making the trip.
I knew this holiday would be a special one, and my friends started teasing about me coming home a wifey. They even offered to help sell the house if I didn’t!
Before I knew it, we were strolling along the beach one evening when I turned around to find Josh down on one knee. It was truly magical. He had even arranged a photographer to capture our perfect moment.
The happy couple in Mexico, just after Josh popped the question!
We returned to the UK to celebrate with family and friends, and right away started viewing lots of stunning venues. We were so lucky to see lots of different places all over the east coast of Scotland. We even roped in my mum to visit some for us – she was always so excited to FaceTime and show us around! It was great to get our own personal tour from the sofa!
We loved the idea of being married in a church or a rustic barn. We visited the gorgeous Cairns Farm Estate (see Niamh's TikTok below), Kinkell Byre and Rosebery Steading. All came highly recommended and didn’t disappoint.
However, one venue that always stuck in my mind was one I’d first seen on TikTok. It had gorgeous grounds, converted stables and even the ruins of a 15th-century church – which you could get married in! That venue is Dunglass Estate, just outside of Dunbar in East Lothian. It was love at first sight. So, we booked straight away. I already know that Josh is the one for me, but when you also get goosebumps from a venue, you just know!
Dunglass Estate is a blank canvas, so they can personalise it to suit (Photo: First Light Photography)
What's next?
We are buzzing to start looking at decor, catering and all the other things that will make our wedding day memorable. I feel like the list is never-ending, but I am unbelievably excited about it all!
Just one question: at what point in the planning are you most likely to turn into a bridezilla? Asking for a friend…
Late January 2025 update – visiting the Scottish Wedding Show and booking caterer and entertainment
Hello, 2025. We finally get to say that we’re getting married next year! We’ve put down the mince pies and picked up our planner, ready for the new year ahead, and are focused on making progress with booking our suppliers.
The last few months have been manic. Our save-the-dates went out towards the end of the year and are now with our nearest and dearest.
Niamh and Josh's homemade save-the-dates
We’ve focused a lot on research lately, finding out what we like and dislike. We attended our first wedding fair, The Scottish Wedding Show at the SEC in Glasgow, and it was a big success. We met lots of lovely vendors and even managed to tick off a few things on our list.
Find out what to expect at the Scottish Wedding Show here
It was brilliant to speak to so many people in the industry and we were given so much advice about our big day.
We tried on lots of different wedding rings, listened to some fantastic musicians and even stroked some alpacas! I loved looking at all the different wedding cakes – I’m particularly fond of the white heart style of cake with ‘just married’ in the middle.
Niamh (left) and sister Millie, her maid of honour, check out the latest trends at the Scottish Wedding Show
Talking of food, we’ve booked the most important part of the wedding: the caterers! We met with lots of different firms who’d been recommended to us. We really wanted a ‘homely’ feel to our menu, since something that is really important to us is making sure we actually like our wedding breakfast.
Discover more fabulous Scottish wedding catering companies
There’s no point paying all that money for some cold soup and a dish no one’s ever heard of! That’s why we’ve chosen to go with the amazing Platter & Pop. They have such an extensive menu and all the food looks and tastes delicious.
We have even designed our own cocktail menu for the day! Platter & Pop can also provide decor and flowers, which was another major bonus for us. We are super-excited for our menu-tasting later this year!
A scrummy Platter & Pop spread at a Dunglass Estate wedding
Booking our entertainment was the next challenge, as making sure the night is filled with music is something we’ve both always wanted.
I was originally after an ABBA-themed wedding but Josh has managed to drag me away from that idea!
Instead, we’ve opted for a ceilidh band, Pentlands Ceilidh Band, which fits in nicely with our ‘big fat Scottish wedding’ theme. Our amazing family friend, DJ David Pullan, will be coming with us from Manchester to help us boogie the night away. We’ve also secured a piper to pipe our guests up to the church on the big day. We cannot wait for the year ahead!
What's next
Over the next few weeks we will be meeting with a graphic designer (also known as my dad!) to come up with our wedding logo and invites. I have also booked an appointment to try on wedding dresses. How exciting!
