'I DID A FULL-ON BEYONCÉ PERFORMANCE'

THE INVITATION TO DANIELLE ARMSTRONG AND TOM EDNEY'S WEDDING PROMISED A SURPRISE - AND SHE DIDN'T DISAPPOINT

- GEORGIA TREVITT

 When Danielle Armstrong and Tom Edney started secondary school in 1999, they could never have imagined that more than two decades later they'd be husband and wife.

The couple were friends for eight years before their relationship blossomed into romance, but they didn't make it official until August 2019.

"Back in September 1999 we started at the same school and little did I know that my future wife would walk through the gates that day," Tom said in the opening line of his wedding speech.

"I'm going to cry all over again hearing it back!" Danielle tells us, as the newlyweds sit down to share their special day with OK!.

"We were 11 years of age the first time that we met each other, so it's crazy to think we're married now." She gushes, "As soon as we got together, it just felt right. It felt like home. I always call him 'my Tom'. I just feel safe with him. He's everything you'd want in a partner. It's my favourite love story." Former TOWIE star Danielle and construction company director Tom, both 34, tied the knot at country estate Ashridge House in Hertfordshire, set in 190 acres of stunning gardens, on Saturday 27 August in front of 100 guests.

"When I was younger, I used to visualise my wedding and I always wanted to get married in a church or a cathedral, but I also love that manor house feel," Danielle says. "The venue actually felt a bit like a church environment as it had high ceilings. When we first viewed it, I cried. I just knew it was The One. It was perfect." Danielle enjoyed a pamper session the night before her big day, as she and her bridesmaids were treated to massages and dinner at a spa just 20 minutes away from the venue.

"We stayed there overnight and in the morning me and the girls were all driven to Ashridge House in a big Mercedes car with a ribbon on," she explains. "I was so relaxed. Everyone else was more nervous than I was.