Stuart Hogg Wedding - Hello Magazine

ON WINNING FORM FOR HIS SCOTTISH CEREMONY, RUGBY STAR

STUART HOGG

WEDS GILLIAN IN A STUNNING CASTLE SETTING - WITH THEIR BONNY PRINCE THE STAR GUEST

ugby union player Stuart Hogg R regularly faces some of the sport’s most formidable opponents but it was

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MAGIC TOUCH Another pinch-me moment was when the registrar read a poem entitled These Hands, which contains the line: “These are the hands that will help you to hold your family as one.”

“It all about nurturing,” says Gillian, 29. “About how we use our hands to wipe away one another’s tears and guide our children.”

Stuart recalls: “I’ve always said I would love to have our kids at the wedding, and Archie really did steal the show. It was another emotional moment when Gillian’s mum brought him up the aisle just before Gillian. He looked at me and gave a little smile.”

Earlier in the day the bride experienced mixed emotions when her older sister and bridesmaid Lesley went into labour and so was unable to attend the ceremony.

“I felt really sad and shocked that she wasn’t going to be with me,” says Gillian. “But by 9pm, as our band was in full swing, I was able to tell our guests that she had given birth to a 6lb 4oz baby boy called Finlay.”

Stuart’s place in rugby’s hall of fame

was cemented in March when he was voted Player of the Six Nations Championship. And among the 200 wedding guests were a number of names from Scottish rugby, including players Greig Laidlaw, Ross Ford, Alex Dunbar, Tommy Seymour, Ryan Grant, Pete Horne, Scott Wight, Tim Swinson and Pat MacArthur and assistant coach Matt Taylor.

But the biggest VIP presence was Scotland itself. Says Gillian: “Stuart and I are very proud to be Scottish and wanted Scotland to be a big part of our day. Stuart particularly loves the pipes and

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seeing his beautiful wife-to-be walking up the aisle that reduced him to tears.

The 24-year-old Scotland and Glasgow Warriors fullback married his childhood friend Gillian Smith on 13 August at the fairytale Barony Castle in Peeblesshire, Scotland, in a ceremony made even more emotional by the presence of the couple’s tartanclad nine-month-old son Archie.

Gillian, a florist, recalled the precious moment: “As I walked up the aisle I could tell Stuart was really nervous. Then, as I got closer, he asked, ‘Are you okay?’ I nodded and asked him the same question. From

that moment on it was like we were the only two people in the room.”

Stuart adds: “When the registrar said I could turn and look at Gillian, it was incredible. She looked beautiful and I just thought about how lucky I am.

The most emotional part of the day for me was hearing Gillian say, ‘I do.’”

‘My wedding and the birth of my son will always be my proudest moments’ Stuart

Scottish rugby union international Stuart, who in March was voted Player of the Six Nations Championship (top left, inset), poses with new wife Gillian in the grounds of Barony Castle near Peebles after their wedding ceremony. As beautiful as 55 the bride was, it was the couple’s son Archie, in tartan trousers and bow tie, who stole the show (above left)

Kilted warriors: The beaming bride and groom pose with some of Scottish rugby’s finest (above, from left): Ross Ford, Greig Laidlaw, Ryan Grant, Alex Dunbar, Scott Wight, Tim Swinson, Pat MacArthur, coach Matt Taylor, Pete Horne and Tommy Seymour. The couple had earlier exchanged vows (below), with Stuart saying: “The most emotional part of the day for me was hearing Gillian say, ‘I do’”

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tartans and wanted to show his Irish relatives some Scottish traditions.”

In the absence of a family tartan, Stuart chose the purple and green hues of the Isle of Skye design for his outfit, but it was little Archie’s matching trousers and bow tie made by Gillian’s aunt Anne Kirk that proved the biggest hit.

Family members also made the wedding cake, the raspberry and damson gin wedding favours, the Scottish tablet (a hard fudge) and the candles on the tables at the reception. Each table also had a tin of Hawick Balls – sweets named after the town where the couple grew up.

Gillian was nervous about her dress – a silk Pronovias skirt teamed with a Bree beaded corset with lace overlay by Watters – right up until the moment she walked up the aisle: “I was unsure of it because it’s so big but finally I came to love it.”

KICKING BACK On hand to make sure the big day went without a hitch were best men Euan Rilley, Stuart’s school friend, and Stuart’s brother Graham, and chief usher Duncan Weir, the Scottish fly-half. Gillian’s bridesmaids were her sister Alison and Duncan’s fiancée Nicola Dickson.

The couple exchanged platinum band rings from Laing Edinburgh, with Gillian’s comprising 13 diamonds in a channel setting.

As the couple signed the register, the song Rise Up by American singer Andra Day played. And later, in a beautiful marquee, Scottish band Something Blue launched the newlyweds into their first dance with a cover of James Bay’s Running.

‘When the registrar said I could turn and look at Gillian, it was incredible’

“It’s a song that conveys the idea that wherever two people go, they’ve always got each other,” says Gillian. “It’s perfect for us because we both love home so much.”

But as much as they love home and being together, the pair often spend time apart due to Stuart’s rugby. Gillian admits it can be hard but the Glasgow-based couple have their own ways of coping.

“We live one week at a time, planning time with Archie and doing simple things like walking the dogs,” says Gillian. “Often it’s impossible to plan holidays or commit to friends’ weddings, but when Stuart is off we make sure we go out for lunch and family walks.

“We hope to have a big holiday for our honeymoon next year – perhaps the Maldives – and if I could get to New York before Christmas I would be happy.”

Stuart is proud of his rugby achievements but says they come second to his wedding day: “I put my family first so my wedding and the birth of my son will always be my proudest moments.”

It is Stuart’s strong sense of family that first attracted Gillian to him.

“We share those values, which mean putting family before anything,” she says. “We like simple things and aren’t into anything extravagant, except our wedding.

I planned every detail and hoped for the best but it was more than I had expected. It was so fun.” H INTERVIEW: SHARON HENDRY PHOTOS: ANGELA LEONIDOU

To see video coverage of the wedding, download the HELLO! Ltd iPad app.

The couple enjoy their first dance as newlyweds, to a cover of James Bay’s Running. They had earlier cut their five-tier cake (below right). Among the wedding guests was former Miss Scotland Ellie McKeating (below)

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