Coronavirus: Cancelled Cornish wedding in Welsh garden

A couple who were "gutted" to have their dream Cornwall wedding cancelled have held a specially themed celebration at their home in Wales.

Gaynor Pinnell and Andy Rice ordered local pasties, cream teas, fudge and cider and exchanged rings in front of a giant Cornish flag to mark the day.

They were supposed to have said their vows in front of 80 guests in Newquay.

The couple, who live in Newport, south Wales, were thanked by a local town councillor for staying away.

Gaynor, 48, who lives in Newport, south Wales, said they had to postpone their wedding which was due to be held on Thursday last week.

"We were gutted because everything was going so smoothly," she said.

"Cornwall is our special place. We love the views, the people, the food, so it was a natural choice to get married there.

"We wanted to make the day special for us in my household. I thought a Cornish day would be amazing.

"I think we made a good day out of a bad situation."

Gaynor said they got ready for 13:00 BST as they would have on their big day, ordered "stunning pasties" from the county, local cream and jam for cream teas, as well as fudge and Cornish cider.

The family support worker and docks engineer also watched video messages from relatives and a specially recorded song from their booked entertainer.

Gaynor's 1950s-style wedding dress was not finished due to the Covid-19 restrictions so she wore a bright floral dress instead.

"I had flowers, it was just perfect. Later we popped in the hot tub seeing as we can't dip in the sea, [it was] a lot warmer too," she said.

Gaynor's daughter, son and his girlfriend are living with them and she said they had "socially distant" visits from well-wishers without breaking the coronavirus rules.

The couple have rescheduled their official big day for 2021.

"We are a bit worried about next year, will we still be able to have 80 guests or no? Will we all have to wear masks? I hope not," Gaynor said.