Married under a painted sky at Òran Mór.
At the top of Byres Road, across from the Botanic Gardens, stands a church that became something better: Òran Mór. I've had the joy of marrying couples in its Auditorium, beneath Alasdair Gray's celestial ceiling mural — and if you're planning your wedding there, here's what I know.
My most local venue — literally two minutes away
Full disclosure: Òran Mór is a favourite of mine for an entirely selfish reason too. I live in Kelvinbridge, two minutes from its door — this is my corner of Glasgow, and walking up Great Western Road to marry a couple under that ceiling never stops feeling like a privilege. It's a practical win for you as well: because there's no travelling involved, couples booking me for Òran Mór pay no travel fees at all — and if you want to meet before the day, we can do it round the corner over a coffee. I also love working with Barry Shaw and the events team here — Barry runs weddings in this building with the calm of a man who has seen everything go right, and a celebrant notices who makes a day run smoothly. Between his team and me, the logistics simply disappear.
A building built for belief — filled with yours
Òran Mór began life in 1862 as Kelvinside Parish Church, and there's a lovely symmetry in a humanist ceremony there: a space built for devotion, filled instead with the things you actually believe in — each other, your people, the life you're building. The stained glass does its thing with the afternoon light, Gray's midnight-blue mural glitters overhead, and your guests walk in already saying wow. My job is making sure the ceremony earns the room.
How your ceremony works here
Ceremonies happen in the Auditorium — a genuinely dramatic space that holds everything from an intimate gathering to hundreds of guests, with the Gallery above giving the best view of that ceiling. The acoustics reward a ceremony written to be heard: vows land beautifully here, laughter rolls around the balcony, and a handfasting under the mural photographs like nothing else in Glasgow. Afterwards, your evening unfolds without anyone moving further than downstairs — and your guests have the whole West End on the doorstep.
A real Òran Mór wedding — Stuart & Rebecca
This May I married Stuart & Rebecca in the Auditorium — a flower arch at the front, fairy lights down the walls, Carrie Macdonald singing the bridal party in, guests over from Australia, and a handfasting under the mural. Their story involves a Tinder first date, most of a bottle of rum and a single rum-bottle emoji that started everything — read the full story here, and see exactly what this room looks like dressed for a wedding below.
More venues I know inside out: Cottiers · Kibble Palace · The Grosvenor · Citation · The Exchange · Mar Hall · The Cruin · Ross Priory · Ardoch · Seamill Hydro · Piersland House