'I went on honeymoonwithout my husband'

When Sam Considine, 38, wed Graham, 43, Covid spoilt their plans for a romantic getaway to celebrate - so new bride Sam took a solo trip

- LARA KILNER

Graham and I met in June 2019. I’d already decided that year that I wasn’t cut out to be in a pair; I was going to be single for the rest of my life. And I was OK with that. So it’s funny how we found each other – especially because the first time he met me, I was dressed as a beggar woman with wild hair and wearing a sackcloth!

He came to watch my amateur dramatics group’s production of Sweeney Todd, we were introduced by a mutual friend and he asked me out. It was a whirlwind romance, but when you know, you know, and seven months later, he proposed while we were on holiday in Morocco.

We didn’t want a long engagement and discussed the idea of a drive-through wedding in Las Vegas. But Covid had other ideas and we went into lockdown the week after returning home from our trip.

After initially planning – and then postponing due to the ongoing pandemic – a March 2021 wedding at a spa hotel in Tunbridge Wells, we finally tied the knot in October that same year. We had a wonderful weekend celebrating with friends and family, but what we didn’t get was a honeymoon.

It was Graham’s dream to go on a cruise, and we both agreed on Hawaii, but I hated the idea of a honeymoon wearing face masks. I was also worried about the possibility of a Covid outbreak forcing us to quarantine onboard, missing the chance to explore all those wonderful islands.