BEAUTIFUL wedding dresses and fascinating stories about some of them can be found at a Wedding Dress Exhibition to be held at St Mary's Church, Cheriton Bishop on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, May 1, 2 and 3.

The exhibition will be open from 10am to 4pm on the Friday and Saturday, with a service on the Sunday among the dresses at 11am followed by the exhibition being open until 4pm.

Alongside our beautiful wedding dress collection there will be a wedding hat display, plus more than 100 hearts made by the Cheriton Bishop Primary and Pre-School children, hanging in the porch.

Julie Drake, on behalf of St Mary’s PCC, said: “The village has really got behind this exhibition with so many involved in putting it together.

“We have 30 dresses dating from 1910, through the decades to 2025. The oldest dress has been loaned to us by Persis Bowers, a village resident, and belonged to her maternal grandmother, Honor Elizabeth Brooksbank (born 1884) who married Frederick Walter Dendy (born 1849), in October 1910 in Cockermouth, Cumberland.

“Although we don't have the dress, we have the photo, of a wedding day that wasn't.

“The chairman of the Cheriton Bishop Parish Council, Peter O’Neill, provides an interesting revelation about the wedding of his father and mother. His mother, Beatrice Eleanor Pattrick applied to Elstree Studios for a dress that had been worn by a film star, just after the war as part of supporting the war effort.

“She was lucky enough to be loaned the dress worn by Margaret Lockwood in Quiet Wedding. However on the wedding day, the paperwork had not arrived. But the flowers, dress, photographer were all booked, so the photograph was taken, the reception had, but they weren't married. They were married three days later when the paperwork arrived but after the dress had been returned.

“Another wonderful story uncovered was from Janet Mitchell, another village resident.

“Jan's mum Elizabeth Ward married her father Bernard William Fursdon on May 2, 1946. He was a soldier fighting in Burma, and at the end of the war brought back silk for his sweetheart to make her wedding dress and Blue Tweed for a Going Away outfit.

“He also brought back two rings. The dress is silver and looks amazing.

“We will also have two Register of Marriages for people to inspect, on loan.”

The exhibition is free to come and see. Do pop along.

There is free admission to the exhibition, refreshments available, all welcome.