The wedding train

The Blackpool couple seen here awaiting the train to their honeymoon destination got married on Valentine's Day and were so lovestruck they nearly missed it!

Gill and Gary Whitehead only met about 18 months ago at the Ultimate Fitness gymnasium in Blackpool, where she works as a sports therapist, but it was a case of love at first sight for the energetic pair.

And after a whirlwind romance, they got engaged at the stroke of midnight on the eve of the Millennium.

Gill's mum Glenys Hindle wrote to the Citizen to tell us about their engagement and how they booked their wedding at Blackpool Register Office a couple of days later, being lucky enough to get a Valentine's Day booking.

Glenys told how glad she was that they had found happiness when she wrote: "Gill has been through various operations over the past four years and she also has three children from a previous marriage. Gary has also had a lot of emotional upset in his lifetime and has a son from his last relationship. "The children are very excited and are looking forward to having a happy family atmosphere."

After the wedding Gill and Gary went to Gill's house in Thornton where they celebrated their marriage with 40 guests. They then rushed to Blackpool North station, still kitted out in full wedding regalia, where they boarded the train to Llandudno for a four-day honeymoon.

When asked why her daughter and son-in-law didn't get changed before travelling by train, Glenys said: "That's exactly the sort of thing Gill would do, she's mad. Apart from that though they were in a rush to catch the afternoon train. No doubt they'll get undressed when they arrive at the hotel!"

To add a special touch of "class" to their day, the train tickets they had booked were standard, but when the driver realised they were newlyweds, he put them in a first class carriage and even presented the happy couple with a bottle of wine.

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