Planning Diaries: Scottish groom Lee shares his wedding plans

Three months to go! Lee Samuel, an actor and film/TV location manager, will marry Lee Johnston, a recently qualified social services worker, at Pollokshields Burgh Hall on 26th July this year

July 2024 – engagement story, first plans and looking for a wedding venue

The one-year countdown begins! I’m Lee J and he is Lee S and we met online back in 2021. After a bottle of wine and staying up all night swapping stories of our childhoods and our dreams and aspirations, we have been inseparable ever since!

We bring out the best in each other and push one another to achieve goals and make positive changes – like when he convinced me to go back and study as a mature student. We bought our first home together, an apartment on the Clyde in Yoker, and have loved making happy memories there over the past couple of years.

Back in December just past, I was busy planning to propose to him. It was a secret, and I needed help from the manager and director of the Beacon Arts Centre in Greenock where Lee was performing in his ninth consecutive pantomime, Beauty and the Beast. He and I share a love of musicals and theatre, and I am in awe of his ability to perform and captivate an audience – so what better way to propose than in front of all his ‘panto pals’ who come and watch him year in year out! 

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I began organising things months ahead of time, so all our friends and family would be there to witness the big moment. Our friend Jenny had the genius idea of suggesting that everyone should come in disguise, so that Lee wouldn’t spot them in the audience! He had absolutely no idea anything was going on.

At the end of the show, it was announced that there was a special surprise for someone – which confused and shocked Lee to a new level of speechlessness! Then, in front of a full house of 500 people, I got up on the stage, down on one knee and popped the question… to which (thankfully!) he said yes!

Then, in front of a full house of 500 people, I got up on the stage, down on one knee and popped the question… to which (thankfully!) he said yes!

We had so many ideas of what we thought our perfect day would consist of, from marrying abroad to getting hitched on a farm. The best advice we could give you is go and see as many venues as possible. That way you begin to understand what you’re really looking for and if the ‘spark’ is there.

We definitely felt that way when we viewed Pollokshields Burgh Hall in May. The staff have been amazing at answering our questions and making us feel relaxed and comfortable about which planning procedures to put into place.  And the location is great for our family and friends. 

As we’re all about music and performing, entertainment has to be a big highlight of our day. We have booked acts for both the ceremony and the evening, with the talented Ginny & The Tonic performing during the day and ever-so-cool band The Kuil getting the party started with a bang!

We knew we didn’t want to go down the traditional route with a lot of things, so we have asked our chosen wedding party to be our ‘pals of honour’ . We’ll also have my best friend Kris and Lee’s best friend KT as our best man and best woman respectively. 

What's next?

While we still have plenty of time until ‘Lee Squared’ becomes official, our next step is to have meetings with caterers – Nosh is a highly recommended name we’re looking forward to trying out. We want to finalise our celebrant as well to ensure the day goes without a hitch.

Hear from our other groom Dean who is recently engaged

November 2024 update – getting fit, finding a photographer and celebrant, and sorting the cake

So much has happened for Lee S and me since our last Planning Diary! Firstly, we have been on a major health kick. We’ve taken up running and embarked on the Couch-to-5K programme. We also joined GXFitness. Kenny Walker and his amazing team have made us focused and determined to get into the best shape possible!

In September, we started searching for a celebrant. After some research, we each compiled a list of our top three choices – and much to our delight, we’d both picked Anne Fraser of Humanist Society Scotland.

We had a lovely meeting with her (with tea and cake) and instantly felt a connection. We loved her vibe and energy and knew straight away that we wanted her to conduct our ceremony. She shares our love for theatre and understands the need to celebrate our love in our own special way.

After our first Planning Diary, photographer Sidey Clark got in touch to arrange a meeting to see if our vibes matched – and, oh boy, they did indeed! His photography style really suits us – he loves to capture bursts of colour and a day of joy – and his relaxed approach and creativeness are exactly what we’re looking for. We’re buzzing to have secured our date with him.

Lee and I have been deliberating over what sort of cake to have as we love all cake and have found it impossible to narrow down the options.

We’ve met some amazing bakers along the way and tasted their yummy bakes – and then we remembered that Jem Hall (who has been a friend of over ten years and who in our eyes is a master baker) had kindly made us delicious cupcakes to celebrate our engagement.

We couldn’t believe we didn’t think of her sooner! We really want to include elements of friendship in our day – and what better way to do that than to have a friend involved with one of our favourite things!

We attended the Scottish Wedding Show in October, where we had a fantastic day chatting to various vendors and other engaged couples. And of course we visited our pals at Tie the Knot Scotland for some great banter.

If you are in the planning stages or you simply want some inspiration, we would definitely recommend you go to the next show and see what it has to offer. Wedding shows can be overwhelming if you’re not prepared, but we went with a plan and a comprehensive list, and that helped us stay on track. 

What’s next?

Lee S is off to pantoland for a while. He’s back at the Beacon Arts Centre in Greenock for his tenth year! Then, it’s outfit time. We’re going to organise with our wedding party what we’ll all wear and we’ll be making a big day of this – filled with fun, laughter and maybe a cheeky cocktail or two! The plan is ‘comfortable but still glam and fab-u-lous’!

Late March 2025 update – finding a florist and sorting the stag parties

We are getting married this year! How the time has flown. The excitement and nerves are oh so real! Since our last update, we have managed to get so much booked, organised and prepared for the big day in July.

Throughout the whole planning process, communication has been key and fortunately for us we’ve agreed and been on the same page and enjoyed it. In January we treated ourselves to some winter sun on holiday in Gran Canaria and took a trip to London to enjoy some ‘Lee time’ before we both got stuck into work again.  

We are so happy that florist Paula from Botany & Brass will be arranging our flowers and tying it in with the bright, bold and fun vibe we are gearing towards. We met her last year at the Scottish Wedding Show, and she knew exactly what we wanted after our first discussion.

We cannot wait to see how she brings our ideas to life. 

We’ve got some exciting meetings planned with decor companies, tailors and jewellers coming up, and we can’t wait to update you and tell you how we get on.   

Check out our events calendar for upcoming wedding shows near you

One tip that we would give to couples who are in the middle of planning a wedding is to be mindful of deposits to secure your vendors and when deposits and payment deadlines are due. Our trusty spreadsheet has been useful to keep us organised and on track with the budget.

Our calendar for the next few months is now filling up with various events in the run-up to the big day.

Our ‘best people’ and ‘pals of honour’ are organising separate away ‘cock-dos’ for us (all will be revealed in the next issue!) and a joint home glitz and glam themed ‘cock-do’ at the Queen Margaret Union in Glasgow’s West End, where we will party the night away with our friends and family as we get ready to enter the next chapter of our lives.

The venue is serving a luxury canapé menu and the sensational Jane Henderson will be providing the entertainment on the night. We are buzzing!

What's next?

The official invites are out so we’re just waiting on RSVPs. We’re getting all the nitty-gritty stuff ticked off and sticking to our fitness regime so we can look and feel our best. We’re nearly there. One final push!