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Wedding on the River

Water Nice Way to Celebrate a Wedding from the Richmond and Twickenham Times

It was the Thames that brought Jason Debney and Alison Shaw together and so the two environmentalists planned a river wedding, right down to a dish of eel at their wedding reception.
Watermen formed a guard of honour or oars for the happy couple following their marriage on July 5, in St. Anne’s Church, Kew.
Jason, 39, from Oxford, is the co-ordinator of the Thames Landscape Strategy. Alison, 36, is the marine and freshwater conservation manager with the Zoological Society of London.
Kew born and bred, Alison attended the Queen’s School and Grey Court.
The 150-strong wedding party crossed Kew Green to the riverside where the newlyweds departed for Richmond aboard the Queen’s Royal Thames barge The Jubilant, rowed by its builder Mark Edwards.
Jason said: “Music played a key part of the ceremony. We left the church to the Hornpipe from Handel’s Water Music. The Water Music was composed for King George I in 1717 for a succession of water parties and picnics along the River Thames – maybe some taking place at Kew.
“Many of these great events were held on the royal barge.
“Three hundred years on it was the Thames the brought us together and we are at our happiest messing about on the river.
“One of the best memories was rowing past Richmond Riverfront that was full to the brim with people having a drink before going to the Bon Jovi concert at Twickenham.
“When they saw us they all stood up, gave us a standing ovation and sung Here Comes The Bride”.

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