MOUNT PLEASANT HOTEL, 18th October 2025
Doncaster couple Zoe & Ben tied the knot on 18th October at the Best Western Premier Mount Pleasant Hotel.
Doncaster couple Zoe & Ben tied the knot on 18th October at the Best Western Premier Mount Pleasant Hotel.
Meeting through mutual friends, Ben & Zoe found their spark after attending a friend’s wedding. Ben walked Zoe home, and after some encouragement from his friends, asked Zoe out. They had their first date on 31st July and got on like a house on fire; ‘Ben sits and listens while I talk’, Zoe laughs.
The Engagement
Their engagement story happened two years ago in November 2023. ‘We kept going back and forth on the engagement as we weren’t sure whether to have our little boy first’, Zoe says. They had their little boy Henry in June and the engagement followed soon after.
It was a trip to Ambleside walking in the lakes where the engagement would happen. ‘I thought it was a weekend away for my birthday’, Zoe remembers. The pair walked up to the top of Ambleside where a bridge overlooks a beautiful waterfall and Ben got down on one knee and popped the question. Zoe said yes and the happy couple enjoyed a romantic champagne toast on the bridge in autumnal surroundings.
The Planning
The planning began immediately after their engagement, while Zoe was still on maternity leave. ‘We booked the venue within a few weeks and got all the big stuff sorted quite early on’, Zoe says. The happy couple set out a rough budget and planned their big day together to have the exact day they both dreamed of.
When it came to shopping for her wedding dress, there could be no other than Tickled Pink Bridal in Hatfield, Doncaster. ‘I’ve known Shelley since I was 16 and actually did my year 10 placement helping out in the shop. I also got my prom dress from there and Tickled Pink is the local boutique in the village where we live. I just got on so well with Shelley’, Zoe says.
Zoe admits she had no idea what she envisaged in her wedding dress; ‘Some of my bridesmaids picked a few gowns out, as well as Shelley, and she also said there was one in the back that she thought would be the right one’, Zoe says.
After trying other gowns on, it was indeed the gown in the back that Shelley had picked out that was the clincher for Zoe. Shelley paired the right accessories to finalise Zoe’s wedding day look. ‘It was so simple, because Shelley has loads of experience and knows what she’s doing, it made my life so much easier to make a decision if I did or didn’t like a gown. She’s so kind and caring’, Zoe says.
The Wedding Day
Zoe stayed over at Mount Pleasant the night before with her bridesmaids and maid of honour. After an early start for hair and makeup, the atmosphere was nice and chilled. ‘Our daughter was a mini bridesmaid as she was a little too old to be a flower girl’, Zoe says.
Ben had stayed home with their little boy Henry and arrived at the hotel to get ready with his two best men.
The ceremony was at 1pm and featured autumnal accents as it’s Zoe’s favourite
time of year. Autumn petals decorated the aisle and big autumnal trees framed the
happy couple.
In memory of her mum, Zoe wore her jewellery and had a photo of her mum on her bouquet to keep with her. And For Ben, he had photos of his grandparents and close family friend Sheila on the inside of his blazer pocket to keep them close to his heart.
Loved ones past but always present.
And little Henry was chief ring bearer, a very important job!
Following the ceremony and after photos, Zoe and Ben disappeared off to enjoy canapes in private as their first meal together. ‘The photographer was brilliant, but in general me and Ben both hate having our photos taken, so we actually cut ours short and got a private room to just sit together, take a breath and check in with each other’, Zoe says.
The couple made sure they had planned in time throughout the day where it was just them, to keep checking in to make sure they were both ok. - a brilliant idea as your wedding day can pass by in a blur.
Following the meal, Zoe and Ben had organised for the Surprise Singing Waiters to come out and entertain their guests. A joint singer and saxophonist got everyone up dancing and started a conga around the room, ‘They even managed to get guests up dancing who we thought wouldn’t get on their feet’, Zoe says.
It was a party atmosphere, with a photobooth doubling up as a guestbook instead of the traditional style, with photos being turned into a video for the happy couple.
One very important detail was the happy couple’s wedding cake; a three tier cake with iced flowers decorating it.
‘I lost my mum at 12 years old and she was good at creating iced flowers.
My mum had made iced flowers for my auntie 26 years ago and she’d actually kept them. A family friend who made our cake delicately added the precious flowers to our cake which caused a lot of tears when everyone realised what they were’, Zoe says.
The singing waiters came back for the evening reception and kept the party going, with a hog roast to feed their guests inbetween dropping moves on the dancefloor!
A particular memorable moment for the couple was captured on camera, with Zoe, Ben and their two children all dancing together as a family, with all their guests surrounding them - a truly heartwarming moment to remember for a lifetime.
When asked what advice they’re give other couples, Zoe says ‘Do it together and make the big decisions together, and be honest with your vendors. We chatted to our vendors with any specific things we wanted and they made sure to tailor our experience to exactly what we wanted’.
List of Suppliers
- Wedding Dress, Bridesmaid Dresses, Groom, Fathers & Best Men Suits - Tickled Pink Bridalwear
- Room Dressing - Karen at All Occasions Venue Stylist
- Photography - Danny at Elegant Photography
- Hair - Hollie Rebecca Mobile Hairstylist
- Nails - Amy Louise Nails
- Cake - Maureen Blackburn (Family friend)
- Flowers - Lucy’s Petals
- Singing Waiters - Aston at Singing Surprise
- Photobooth (and guest book) - Phil at Vulcan Photo Booth