A couple wanted to save money so kept their wedding a secret - and spent the day eating KFC with their dog before springing a surprise on friends and family.

Chris and Maisie Leyshon tied the knot at a registry office before doing a big reveal to friends and family that evening.

They told guests to be at the Lighthouse in Swansea on September 30 last year - to 'celebrate their engagement'.

Chris, 28, and Maisie, 25, only told their parents and siblings about the plan.

The groom then jumped on a mic for the big reveal in the evening - sending everyone "mad"."

Maisie's cousin Chloe said: "As soon as we walked into the room it was such a vibe but then when the celebrant came out then that's when the real surprise hit us! "

"There were laughs, tears and cheers, it was amazing, now bring on the post wedding hen and stag do!"

The couple, from Port Talbot, are now happily married and estimate they saved thousands by foregoing a big bash.

Maisie, a civil servant, said: "We quite quickly we realised that a big wedding wasn’t for us."



"It’s just the stress of it all and the money, and we didn’t really think it would be appropriate to elope."

The couple made the secret plan in February after getting engaged on Christmas Day 2022.

They didn't tell anyone about the plan until the first week of September 2023, when they told just their parents and siblings.

Chris and Maisie married at 11:30am before stealing away to avoid being seen.

The ‘engagement party’ was then set for 6pm - leaving the pair "a few hours to chill and get a KFC" to eat with their French bulldog, Harry."

They then travelled to the venue, which may have aroused suspicion - as it’s "a bit posh for an engagement party", said Maisie."

Once the guests had arrived, Chris, an accountant, jumped on mic and said: "There’s been a lot of speculation, so we wanted to put record straight" - before adding "does anyone want a wedding?"

Maisie said: "At that point everyone just went mad."

The couple then re-did their vows in the evening before partying the rest of the night away.

Maisie said: "We were really nervous."

"We thought some would be disappointed, but everyone seemed to love it. As far as we know it went down very well."

"Everybody was so shocked they had no choice but to be happy!"

Maisie said the major factor in their decision was money.



She said: "We are mid-renovation on our house."

"So we didn’t want to spend £30,000 in one day and then come home to a house that wasn’t finished."

Maisie also said that weddings rarely live up to their hype.

"I’m not very good with stress and pressure, it wouldn’t have been enjoyable."

"Nobody cares about your wedding as much as you do, it’s just a lot of stress."

"You are paying for them to have a good time and there’s so much pressure."



"Also it seems like these days weddings just get bigger and bigger."

The couple spent £8,000 in total. The average wedding costs £18,400, according to wedding planning website Hitched.

Maisie said: "Because we weren’t having the full works of a wedding party, we could afford somewhere a bit posher."

"The Lighthouse venue sits on the edge of cliff and all the windows look out."

"It was quite far away, people had to get a coach, so we think a few people may have caught on to what we were doing."

Maisie also revealed how the whole plan was nearly derailed - after some children who go to school where her mother-in-law teaches went to the registry office the week before.

There they spotted the couples' names on a board.

Masie said: "My mother-in-law said of course they’re not getting married... little did she know!"

Since the pair posted about their novel wedding arrangement, they say they have been inundated with messages with people wanting to know exactly how they did it so they can replicate it.

Maisie said: "We've had hoards of message, I won’t be surprised if more people start doing it."

Chris said: "I don’t think anyone was expecting the celebrant to come out and marry us again in front of everyone."

"We wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. The photos say it all, you can see the happiness in everyone’s faces, we had the best day and night and wouldn’t change any of it for the world."

The total cost of their wedding was £9,790, around half the UK average cost of a wedding.

Breakdown of costs:

Venue - £1,700
Band - £550
Celebrant - £450
Legal ceremony and notice of marriage - £130
Photographers - £900
Flowers - £1,100
Banners - £260
Selfie pod - £180
Coaches for transporting guests - £1,000
Cake - £70
Rings - £400
Maisie’s outfits - £350
Chris' outfit - £300
Table decorations - £400