They arranged their first date on BlackBerry Messenger.
Hannah and Euan were married on Saturday 26 September at two o'clock in the University of Glasgow Memorial Chapel, up on Gilmorehill in the West End. They were fourteen when they met, and they have spoken to each other every single day since. It was a short trip for me, too: I live in Kelvinbridge, ten minutes down the hill.
Their story
They went to different high schools, so this was no accident. At fourteen, they organised a date over BlackBerry Messenger (ask the younger guests what that was) and met at the Tryst, the travelling fair that rolls into Larbert once a year. If you grew up round there, you know exactly the kind of night: a field full of teenagers, and at least one of them regretting the Waltzers. Hannah was dropped off by her pal Emma's dad. Euan brought his pal Liam.
From that night, they spoke every day. They still do. It wasn't a straight line, mind: like a lot of first loves, they were on and off for years. Then in 2019, on their friends' annual day out at the Fringe, and with a helpful shove from Emma, they gave it another go. The timing was terrible. The following week Euan moved to Montpellier to study for a year. Hannah simply went to see him, in Montpellier and in Paris. Long distance was not going to be the thing that stopped them.
Then Covid. Euan got on one of the last flights out of France and moved in with Hannah at her mum and dad's, and later the pair of them swapped to Euan's parents'. After that came a Master's year in Glasgow in a flat with their pal Jake, a year back home in Falkirk saving hard, and more flat viewings than anyone should ever have to sit through. In August 2023 they got the keys to their own place in Dennistoun.
The proposal, in the dark
In November 2024 they went to Vietnam and Thailand, and Euan had a plan: a cruise round Ha Long Bay, a ring in his pocket, the balcony, the sunset. What he had not factored in was how long Hannah takes to get ready when she's given the time. He tried to hurry her along casually. The sun went down anyway.
So Euan, a man who famously hates having his photo taken, suggested they get a photo out on the balcony before dinner. In pitch darkness. Hannah thought he had lost the plot. That was when he got down on one knee. Her first words are not for repeating in a university chapel, but the next one was yes.
Hannah's engagement present to Euan? Two kittens, bought while the pair of them were still in Thailand, and minded by her family until they got home.
The ceremony
Their friend Robbie piped the wedding party in, and in that chapel, with the stone throwing the sound back at you, a piper is something else. The bridesmaids came down the aisle to "God Only Knows". Then Hannah walked in with her dad to "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer. That one had been chosen as a surprise for Hannah's mum, and it stayed a secret right up until the first notes.
They wanted it classic: no rituals and no props, just the traditional vows and a proper "I do". So I gave their story room to breathe, and their maid of honour, Emma (the same Emma who got them back together at the Fringe), read a poem called "The Vow". We took a quiet moment for the two grandparents who couldn't be there, and before the promises I asked everyone to join Hannah and Euan in a short silence. In a room built as a memorial, that silence lands.
It was an unplugged ceremony, so their photographer and videographer caught the day while everyone else simply watched. And they went back up the aisle to "Praise You" by Fatboy Slim, which is exactly the right energy for two people who have been talking for fourteen years and have no intention of stopping. As for what comes next, they want to live near their families and friends, know their neighbours, and have a big garden for growing flowers and vegetables. A life rooted in the people around them.
Marrying at the University Chapel yourself?
The Memorial Chapel is a working chapel on the Gilmorehill campus, with carved oak stalls running down both sides and Douglas Strachan's stained glass at the far end. The stalls face each other across the aisle, so your guests look across at one another as well as up at you, and the whole room seems to lean in. It takes humanist weddings, and it is one of the most beautiful rooms in the city to stand up in.
A few honest things from the front of the room. Check your eligibility with the university's events team before anything else, because the rules on who can marry there have changed over the years. It is a long room, so bring your guests forward rather than letting them spread down the length of it. If you are having a piper, use them properly: the stone was made for it. And ask about confetti early, because this is a listed memorial building and the answer will not be "anywhere".
My Glasgow University Chapel guide covers the room in more detail, and my West End Glasgow wedding celebrant page covers its neighbours. Couples marrying anywhere in Glasgow pay no travel fee. If you are wondering how the day actually runs, from the silence to the "I do", read what happens at a humanist wedding.
Fourteen years of talking every day, and they're nowhere near done. Congratulations, Hannah and Euan.
Ceremony at the University of Glasgow Memorial Chapel, West End. Photos: John Paul Fitzpatrick. Photographer on the day: Natalie Jane Photography. Videographer: Gregor Stirling Media.
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