Christmas Special Clip Show Don't Tell the Bride

Over the years, Don't Tell The Bride has shown us it doesn't just know

how to throw a wedding, it also does a pretty magical Christmas, too.

I'm Stacey Dooley, and I'm about to take a special look back

at Don't Tell The Bride's Christmas past.

We've seen many a groom arrange a festive ceremony,

with nothing but 12 grand...

-£12,000 all gone?

-Spent. Gone.

-..three weeks...

-I think she's in for a bit of a shock.

How are we going to get ready for a wedding in here?

..and a Christmassy spring in his step...

So Christmassy. So Christmassy.

..while the brides sat back nervously...

Oh, my God!

..and prayed they weren't planning a turkey.

Is this a joke?

I've been through the Don't Tell The Bride archive,

so get ready to jingle your wedding bells,

with a Santa's sackful of the most festive nuptials ever!

On this week's show, we'll have glad tidings...

Christmas!

..and of course the odd ding-dong merrily on high.

It's so bad, it's funny.

-There'll be wise men...

-This is going to end in disaster, isn't it?

..not-so-wise men...

I like the elf. Looks a bit freaky.

..and brides going completely out of their tree.

-Oh, my God!

-I cannot believe how horrible it is.

I'll give him stressful when I don't turn up.

So stick around...

-SHE SQUEALS

-Oh, the penguin!

It's going to be crackers!

I don't even want to marry him.

Over the ten series of Don't Tell The Bride,

absolutely loads of couples have got married in real style.

But, as we've seen, there's nothing quite like a festive wedding.

For some, it's the most wonderful time of the year.

But for others, it's the most wonderful time...all year.

Take John. His bride Jackie loved Christmas so much

that he decided to give her

a wedding based on her favourite time of year...

in the middle of May.

I want to make this wedding something that Jackie would never,

ever have expected

and I want her to be just in total shock from start to finish.

But it wasn't the mild Scottish summer that was the problem, though.

It was John's reception venue, his local boozer, the Miners' club.

This is the first choice, cos this is where me and Jackie met.

Pretty glamorous, as well.

I'm not glamorous. Maybe Jackie, she'll...

No, you're definitely not glamorous.

I'll have all the rainbow tinsel, massive, big tree,

you know, all looking right for Jackie.

Could have a wee real Santa's grotto maybe in the corner, or...

Yeah, I think there's real potential to kit this place out really well

and be fantastic, you know.

Real potential is one thing...

Oh, look, there's wedding bells!

Is that a big, massive bauble as well over there?

..but May is not exactly the best time to go shopping

for Christmas decorations, so John was left with no choice

but to go on the scrounge in his loved ones' garages and attics.

After a beautiful ceremony at a castle,

it was time for unsuspecting Jackie

to see the venue for her wedding reception...

and how could we ever forget her reaction?

Why do I get the feeling you're not happy?

Would you honestly do this to me?

Would you honestly have this in the Miners'?

Honestly? Is this a joke?

What if I say I'm not getting out?

-You can trust me.

-No, I can't.

You can trust me. Will you trust me?

Jackie, trust me.

I need that back, but you're not going to go away, are you?

Promise. Right?

I'm hoping that I'm going in here for a drink and then we're leaving.

Trust me. Come on! You've trusted me so far.

-I love you. Come on.

-But it's here...

-Trust me, trust me.

I'm having a reception in the Miners'.

Am I having a reception in the Miners'?

-Yeah.

-Right, OK, that's fine...

Walk in, close your eyes. Come on.

Trust me, trust me, trust me, trust me.

Watch my dress on the door.

-You ready? Ready for this?

-Yeah.

Right, go.

Oh, my... Christmas! Oh, my God! Oh, my God!

Yep, Jackie really did love Christmas THAT much.

Oh...my...God.

-Like it?

-Oh, my God, John!

It's amazing!

THEY LAUGH

That's my baubles on that tree!

You are mental.

-To John and Jackie.

-Well done.

Thank you.

John wasn't the only one to pull off an out-of-season festive wedding.

Ski-loving James loved this time of year so much

that he wasn't going to let a heatwave in June stop him

from having the Christmassy wedding he wanted.

I'm going to throw a winter theme into the summer,

almost like a winter wonderland.

And to help him achieve his winter wonderland, James had

a Santa's wish list of props he needed to make his dream a reality.

Oh, my...! Look at the size of that penguin.

It's a posh penguin. It's a wedding penguin. I just love penguins.

Love them? Looks like it was more of an unhealthy obsession.

I'm doing it for the penguins, man.

Oh, it's on! It's on!

It's on!

On the morning of the wedding,

while James was a bit hot under the collar,

blissfully unaware Charlotte got the first clue of what was to come.

What? What?

What? What?!

I'm assuming the reindeers were on their summer holidays.

With tinsel!

It's like a Christmas-themed wedding.

This is absolutely bonkers. This is, like, what you want?

It's just a bit surreal, though.

And if they thought that was surreal...

Look at that! What is that?

Oh, the penguin.

This is wicked.

But James had saved the best for last...

Oh...my...God!

..a wintry wonderland complete with giant snowflakes, fake snow,

and fibreglass snowmen, all in the middle of June.

Oh, James, it's beautiful!

It's beautiful. Oh, my word.

It's so beautiful. Thank you.

Our next groom, Lee, took Christmas to the extreme

when he took a well-loved Christmas panto...

The theme is Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs.

It's going to be based on Ellie being Snow White, and I'll be

Ellie's Prince Charming at the end of the aisle waiting for her.

..and transferred it from the stage...

to outside in a forest.

Wow!

This would be where she's going to be walking through, right?

And it looks like it's been shovelled for her.

-What do you think?

-That's amazing.

Bride Ellie's first clue for her unseasonably festive wedding

came at her dress reveal.

Is there anything else to go with it?

I can't even see the blue. It's right under me bum.

Oh, my God.

THEY GASP AND GIGGLE

What has he done?!

That's changed it.

-What a

-BLEEP!

-What...? Oh,

-BLEEP.

-I can't move me arms.

-DRESSER:

-I'll loosen it off.

Lee's carefully chosen props had caught this bride off-guard.

And after looking at the mirror, mirror on the wall...

He's a good 'un, isn't he?

..Ellie felt like the prettiest of them all.

I like the fact that it's got colour on it,

it's not just a boring, plain dress.

And he's remembered the one thing that I wanted were a veil.

And the bouquet is awesome.

Finally it was show time for this fairy-tale couple.

Oh, my God! Snow!

-I'm so excited.

-SHE GIGGLES

# This is my winter song to you

# My love a beacon in the night... #

SHE SOBS

# My words will be your light... #

You look so cute.

Planning a Christmas wedding out of season is one thing,

but what about the grooms planning a Christmas-themed wedding

actually at Christmas,

risking the most important day of his bride's life alongside

the most wonderful time of year in one go?

Surely no-one has the baubles to pull it off?

I want an ice palace-type thing.

With regards to actually having a blessing on the ice...

-Will you be wearing ice skates?

-Have it big, pull out all the stops.

Magical Christmas feeling.

That's right, our next four brides would discover...

-Oh, my God.

-I'm freaking out.

This is absolutely rubbish, what he's done.

..that giving their four grooms full control of their wedding...

We can't get reindeer.

There's something about Christmas tree shopping.

..could actually be a nightmare before Christmas.

I'm getting married in five hours and now I might not be able to go.

There's no wedding if they don't cough up.

So it's just going from bad to worse.

I hate him so much at the minute.

So let's remind ourselves of the four festive fiances

that were brave enough to take on the challenge.

First up, Steve. When he planned his wedding to Emma,

he had a special reason for wanting a festive feel to his big day.

We actually met at Christmas.

I proposed at Christmas and Emma's birthday is at Christmas.

But with more than one princess to please,

Steve knew exactly what he wanted for his Christmassy theme.

The theme for me wedding is the film Frozen...

Are you going to be Elsa, Daddy?

The kids obviously love the film, it's on constantly...

# Let it go, let it go... #

It was a lovely idea, but there was one small issue.

The words to the film, the music,

everything is imprinted in our heads.

I'm sick to death of the sight of it, really.

So a themed wedding for a bride that hated the film -

it was no surprise, then, that this groom would end up

skating on thin ice.

But there was one groom who took the gold medal for that,

and that was Nick.

He wanted to keep it seasonal and simple

when planning his wedding to Rosie.

I want to give Rosie a themed wedding.

-The Christmas theme.

-But Nick had a good reason.

He wanted to make up for the less than happy Christmases Rosie

had had since the passing of her father.

I loved Christmas. Then, losing my dad, Christmas was never the same.

Hand on my heart, I could never say

I've had a good Christmas since, really.

So that's what I'm looking to change, hopefully.

Problem was, this well-meaning groom had a bride-to-be who was

used to getting what she wanted.

I can be a brat. I do stamp my feet until I get my own way.

Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. You do.

And if it didn't turn out perfect...

I wouldn't be happy at all.

And you would get it thereon after

for probably the rest of your married life.

What are we talking about?

-Not that.

-Oh.

-Not that!

Why is everything about that? No, not that at all.

You wouldn't be getting none of that for the rest of your married...

It would be how people say.

The pressure was on, then,

for Nick to get his Christmas-themed wedding right.

The pressure was also on for ski fanatic Darren

when he planned his wedding to Bronte.

He had every reason for wanting it to have a Christmassy feel.

Their first Christmas together was, well, not together

after Darren jetted off for a season to be an Alpine ski instructor.

Two weeks into our relationship, Darren got on a boat and left me.

-I left to be a seasonaire in Switzerland.

-Like a ski instructor.

-No, not a ski instructor!

-Basically, that's what he told...

You have to be qualified

to be a ski instructor. It's not a ski instructor.

OK, not a ski instructor. Jeez!

So Darren had some making-up to do.

I want to do this wedding so that she can experience our first

Christmas all over again but together, as a married couple,

recreate the Christmas that we missed.

When it came to location, Bronte had hopes of a wedding

close to her heart and her home.

If I could choose where I wanted my wedding,

my dream wedding would be something that had a history to my family.

Cambridge...

But with his best men Dan and Ben assembled,

this ski-loving groom revealed his much more ambitious plan.

Boys, we're going to Switzerland!

We're going back to Saas-Fee. I'm going to be doing Christmas there.

So a wedding abroad for a bride who wanted to stay close to home.

Darren, it's going to end in disaster, isn't it?

But there was one groom who went even further afield

when he planned his wintertime wedding...

That one's quite good.

..and that was Juan.

I want a nice, tidy bush.

His bride-to-be was called Alice,

and he wanted to give her a very special Christmas wedding.

'She deserves something epic.'

It's all right, Alice. It's heavier than it looks.

We're approaching Christmas,

and I want it to be the fairy-tale ending to the year, basically.

Growing up, she's told me that she read Alice In Wonderland

because her name's Alice, basically, and so I can't think of

anything more epic than an Alice In Wonderland wedding.

She was about as confident in her groom's capabilities as he looked.

You always say, "Oh, yeah, it's going to be all right.

"Be all right, there's loads of time."

-And there never is.

-Yeah, but it always is all right.

It never is all right.

It did start off all right, however,

when Juan told his best men about his plan.

In Central Park in New York,

there is actually a big sort of Alice In Wonderland statue.

Right. OK.

So it's going to be an Alice In Wonderland fairy-tale wedding

-in New York.

-OK.

-That's what I'm going for!

-Amazing.

-Good luck!

Cheers.

So there you have it.

Four very different grooms with four very different surprises

waiting for their brides.

Now, if you're planning a Christmas wedding in the UK

or the Alps or New York, there was one thing that all of our grooms

absolutely needed to find.

No, not a Cliff Richard calendar.

Snow, of course.

Wait.

Not yet. We're inside!

-THEY SING ALONG TO RADIO:

-# Last Christmas, I gave you my heart

# But the very next day, you gave it away... #

Steve had decided to base the theme of his wedding to Emma

on their kids' favourite animated film.

Hopefully, this will be the one.

And where better to find a magical Frozen-covered landscape than...

the Hemel Hempstead Snow Centre?

Oooh!

Steve planned to have his wedding

at the bottom of this indoor ski slope.

It might not be the icy kingdom from the film,

but that wasn't stopping Steve.

I sort of want, like, ice sculptures.

-Temperatures are going to be in your favour.

-Keep them. Definitely.

-My feet are freezing!

-See, it's perfect for me. This is what I want.

Do you think we'd be able to build a snowman with this?

-Um...

-Let's try.

THEY LAUGH

While these guys frolicked in the snow...

..Nick knew he wouldn't have a snowball's chance in hell

of giving Rosie a Christmas to treasure

unless he found the right location for his Christmas-themed wedding.

-Why don't we start with locations?

-OK.

-I've just googled "snow in the UK"...

-Yeah?

..and one of the headlines is "Six inches of snow blankets Scotland".

-That's quite deep.

-Quite deep.

So with his best man in tow,

Nick headed to the Cairngorms in Scotland to find a wintry location.

But having travelled 550 miles north

and 1,245 metres up a mountain,

the boys discovered an important lesson about snow.

# It's gonna be a cold, cold Christmas... #

-It's freezing!

-It's so cold...

It's winter, isn't it? It's all about the winter.

Do you reckon you could hire massive heaters?

-You'd melt the snow! It would defeat the object.

-That's what I'm saying.

You don't want to take away from what you're doing.

You're here to get married.

You don't want to be thinking about being cold.

Do you want the winter effect without the temperature?

Oh, my toes are freezing!

Can we go in?

With frostbite setting in,

Nick realised they would have to look to milder climates

for a wedding venue.

So, after heading all the way back down south,

Nick ended up booking an ice rink in Brighton

that he hoped wouldn't give Rosie cold feet.

# Snow is falling... #

When it came to finding the ultimate wintry location,

ski-loving Darren hit the nail on the head

when he planned an Alpine wedding to Bronte

to make up for missing their first Christmas together.

Along with best men Dan and Ben, Darren had flown 700 miles

to check out the glacial ice cave that he had chosen

as a venue for his ceremony.

Just the small issue of getting up the mountain first...

What a great way to start a wedding.

There's not many wedding arrivals that you'd get

and you're travelling up from 1,800 to 3,500, is there?

I don't know what Bronte'll expect coming up here.

I think she'll have a bit of a panic attack, I think.

Not only will she be in her wedding dress,

she's going to have ski boots on, not wedding shoes.

So, yeah, I think she's in for a bit of a shock.

One more to ride, now, guys. This is the funicular.

-Jesus Christ, Darren.

-I know.

I think Bronte'll probably be feeling the same.

She'll be in a wedding dress, she'll be cold...

It's like a pilgrimage. She's making that commitment

to get to the top of the mountain to be with me.

After a two-kilometre climb, the boys finally reach the location

for Darren's wintry wedding ceremony.

-It's so Christmassy.

-It's absolutely stunning, Darren.

MUSIC: The Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy by Tchaikovsky

-Wow!

-Wow!

-That is absolutely amazing.

It takes your breath away.

What could be more romantic?

-Look at the roof!

-I know.

The altar is actually ice, and we're going to have to make sure

Bronte's dress covers her up, because it's pretty cold in here.

I don't know what temperature it is, but it's cold.

Yep, once again, it was that "snow is cold" realisation.

Like Darren, Juan was after the perfect magical wintry location

for his wedding to Alice,

and he flew 3,500 miles across the Atlantic

to the Big Apple to find it.

# New York

# Concrete jungle that dreams are made of... #

But thanks to an unseasonably warm winter,

the white stuff was nowhere to be seen.

MUSIC: Fairytale Of New York by The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl

Juan was hoping the centrepiece and sole inspiration for his wedding

would make up for it, though -

a larger-than-life-size statue of Alice in Wonderland in Central Park.

-It's big, isn't it?

-Massive.

It's in your face, like...

-A bit cheesy...

-It's a bit cheesy, innit?

I think I definitely wouldn't want to get married here,

cos I think... Well, obviously, it's crawling with kids.

But at the same time, I'm torn, cos it's like...

this whole trip, coming to New York, has been because of this.

So while Alice was Home Alone,

Juan found himself, well... Lost In New York,

but not for long, as nearby lay just the location

to give this tale a happy ending.

Pretty fairy-tale here, isn't it, this castle?

Belvedere Castle - it's well fairy-tale.

Despite finding his castle,

this king had a long way to go to please his Queen of Hearts.

People have high expectations when it comes to Christmas.

So, with the locations finalised,

our grooms were going to stop at nothing but the best

as they searched for inspiring ingredients

for their Christmassy wedding.

With Santa's little helpers in tow,

our four grooms set out to deck their halls

with a spot of Christmas shopping.

Steve and best man were having a jolly old time...

Some of them. Some of them.

..looking for Christmas decorations.

-What about them?

-Do you want it to look good?

If only the bridesmaids shared his Christmas cheer...

They're a bit see-through. You can see all my bum.

I'm happy, very happy. Are you two happy?

In Switzerland, Darren was taking care of practicalities.

For the wedding day, do you have any white boots?

-For your wife?

-For my wife, exactly.

-Er, yeah, so, more or less white.

-Yeah, that'll be perfect.

And back home, despite sacking off snowy Scotland,

Nick had not given up on a white Christmas.

What exactly is it that you're looking to achieve?

-If it could snow...

-We can make it as wintry as you want.

And to top it all off...

Icicles. Snowman.

Magical Christmas feeling.

I like the elf. Looks a bit freaky.

While the boys were busy filling their stockings,

the girls were given the first clue

of what was to come on their hen dos.

Steve, who had planned a wedding on a ski slope,

sent his bride Emma...

Oh, my God, look at that!

..to a ski slope.

Is anybody else nervous or is it just me?

THEY LAUGH

Going to kill him.

And despite the odd fall...

THEY LAUGH

..Steve had somehow managed to not slip up with his idea.

Coming round sideways!

-LAUGHING:

-Bit happier now.

The same couldn't be said for Darren,

who wanted to marry Bronte in an ice cave in the Swiss Alps

to make up for missing their first Christmas together.

So her hen do was, well...

a crash course in temperature endurance.

-I think I'm here for my hen do.

-Yeah? What's the name?

Er...er, Graver?

Yeah, that's fine. Just have a seat in there.

CHEERING

Darren's hint of what was to come had gone down well with the girls

but not so much with the bride.

You excited to be here?

Yeah, thrilled.

It's not really me. I don't drink alcohol.

An ice bar is really nice. I just don't think it's Bronte.

Oh, my God, it's freezing! Argh!

Can I have two?

-I'm cold!

-Put your hood up, put your hood up!

While Bronte was getting a taste of what was to come...

No!

..Rosie was getting the same

with Nick's special Christmas present to her.

What on earth is that?

This is going to be something ridiculous, isn't it?

-THEY LAUGH

-Oh, my God, that is gross!

I can't even look at it.

"To my beautiful Rosie, tonight is the night.

"You're going on your hen do.

"PS I'm afraid you have to take me everywhere with you."

I'm not taking that with me!

But despite wanting to give Rosie a Christmas to remember,

Nick had sent the hen party to an empty local bar...

Certainly lively, isn't it?

..that was more Silent Night than Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree.

-Maybe it's just a slow start.

-It wants to be a slow start.

-Are you a little bit annoyed?

-Yeah.

I think this is absolutely rubbish, what he's done.

-Like, literally, as blunt as that.

-Would you rather have no hen do?

This is basically like having no hen do.

And despite her mum's best attempts,

there was no cheering this Grinch up.

It's not that bad, really, is it?

There's more people here, it's filled up a little bit.

I'm enjoying myself, look.

I am, too. Look.

She's a princess, and she thought she was going to have

a real glam night out.

-Yeah.

-It's not exactly that.

Groom Juan was planning a Fairytale In New York wedding to Alice

for their first Christmas together as a married couple.

And even as Alice turned up at the airport,

she still didn't know where her hen do or wedding would take place.

-Are you here for your flight to New York today?

-Oh!

But Alice's festive joy soon disappeared.

Having not checked the accommodation out for himself,

Juan had booked the bridal party into an apartment 150 blocks up

in the district of Washington Heights.

Oh, my God...

There's, like, one, two, three, four beds, and there's six of us.

How are we going to get ready for a wedding in here?

-Exactly.

-Because that's what we're here for.

-Wedding dress in here.

-I want to go home.

-Oh, Sue!

It's not good enough and it's got to be sorted out.

-Hello?

-Hi, Juan.

-Oh, all right, Emily? How are you doing?

We just don't feel very secure around here.

Like, something needs to be done, like, straightaway.

Um...I mean, I don't really know what...what we can do.

Tell him it's supposed to be my hen do tonight and because of all this,

I'm not going to get one.

I just had to turn away from Alice, cos she's, like, crying.

This is your future mother-in-law and your wife.

Do you really want to start off with this kind of situation going on?

We've got £2,500 left that we haven't paid,

but that'll mean that we can't have a venue, can't have a cake,

can't have flowers, all that sort of stuff,

so there won't be a wedding, basically, if we use that money.

He's saying they've got £2,500 left,

but that means there won't be a venue, a cake...

there won't be a wedding.

-What the

-BLEEP

-are we supposed to say to that?

-What are you waiting for?

-Them, talking to each other.

Can you try and sort that out your end and then get back to us

-as soon as you can?

-'Yeah, OK.'

-Thanks.

Right. Yeah, so, basically,

if we don't sort it out, they're going to go home.

So...

Despite Juan's best intentions,

his organisational skills had let him down,

so the girls took matters into their own hands.

I'm not bothered about having a hen party.

-I'm too tired and I'm too

-BLEEP

-off.

-Yeah.

So whatever he was going to spend on that...

We need to put it towards...

We need to look at getting tonight sorted out

-and then they have tomorrow to deal with this.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

Using the money for the cancelled hen party,

the girls checked themselves in to a hotel downtown.

What should have been a fairy tale in New York

has had a nightmare start.

The run-up to Christmas is always pretty stressful,

so throw a wedding into the mix and it really is a whole other story,

leaving one big question - what could possibly go right?

And as the big day approaches, it seems the answer is...

almost nothing.

# Rudolph...

# Rudolph... #

Steve was determined to take his icy-themed wedding to Emma

by the reins with his latest idea.

It's great, innit?

It's very traditional, in't it? Looks really nice.

What do you think about idea of reindeers and sleigh?

I think the kids'll like it. Our Emma...

I don't think she'd expect it.

Imagine when they're doing that on snow.

THEY LAUGH

But with no money left in his budget,

Steve had no choice but to go begging to the in-laws.

-Hiya.

-Hi, Steve. How's it going?

-Horrible...

-Really?

It's all coming together, but just the stress.

Why have you actually come here to see me this morning?

I've got no money left. I've run out of money.

I want Emma's dad to contribute £300.

When do you need this money by?

Er...

as soon as possible, really.

Are you wanting me to see Emma's dad

and ask him whether he can give you this money?

If you can, yeah.

Because Emma's father is deaf,

Steve needed mum-in-law Christine to communicate on his behalf.

Hello.

The budget for the wedding, £12,000,

it's gone.

So he said, could I ask you if you can give him £300?

£12,000 is all gone now?

Spent. Gone.

He asked me to ask you, can you give him £300, please?

Yes?

(Oh, thank you.)

It's embarrassing, really.

He's not going to say no and upset me, is he? So I just feel really bad

especially when he knows my dad ain't got no money.

It's not good.

If Emma was finding it stressful,

it was nothing compared to what Nick endured.

As well as screwing up the hen do,

he'd somehow managed to overlook his weekly delivery of flowers to

Rosie, or as she called it - Flower Friday!

There was no flowers at all.

We was quite shocked

because it's the first Friday that he's actually missed.

If he was here I would have punched him.

If he'd have come home from work...

The joke of it is, though, he wouldn't have ever come home

-from work, on a Friday, without a bunch of flowers, does he?

-Cos she'd have punched him.

Because I would have punched him.

No. He knew what I was like from when he met me.

It was time for mother-in-law to step in.

-Hello, is that Nick?

-Yes.

I want to ask you what in hell are you playing at?

-What I'm playing at?

-Can I remind you of something?

-Of course you can.

-Flower Friday? Guess what happened.

-What?

-No flowers have arrived.

-That...

-How do you think that went down?

-That's because...

That's, er...

Well, you see...

I haven't got, er...

You don't know what to say, do you?

-Go on, then. Go and have a drink.

-All right. Bye.

-Bye!

Hmm.

He's got no answer for why you didn't get any flowers on Friday.

-I want to kill him.

-It's so stressful apparently.

I'll give him stressful when I don't turn up.

# We wish you a Merry Christmas... #

Poor Nick and little did he know that this Ice Queen would not

be thawing any time soon.

# And a happy New Year. #

OK, guys, time to go.

In Cambridge, Bronte was making her way to Darren's secret

Christmas Alpine wedding location.

Unbeknown to her, it was going to take a mammoth 17-hour coach journey to get there!

Some way to make up for missing your first Christmas together, Darren!

We got up at three o'clock.

It's now quarter past five, erm...I...

I don't know where we're going.

I think it's going to be a long trip.

-I've seen the sign for Dover so I guess we're going to Dover.

-Yes!

Bye!

-Hello, Darren.

-Where are you, Darren?

I think Bronte and her family will probably be enjoying the journey.

Just cos they...purely cos they get to look out the window

cos there's a lot to see and it's a really, really scenic journey.

Yeah, really scenic.

Having been on the road for six hours already, there was still

another 600 miles to go.

Not that they knew that!

I just want to get there now. I'm getting a bit tired of this.

BABY CRIES

I'm getting bored.

I've no idea where we're going. I just want to know.

But 14 long hours after they left home and with the coach party

already bored out of their Christmas tree, disaster struck!

SIRENS BLARE

It's at the moment at standstill, like proper standstill,

people are getting out their cars.

It's gone to that point that I don't care.

Bronte was in serious danger of missing her own wedding day

and it all became too much.

-SHE SOBS

-I just need to sleep,

but I can't because I feel claustrophobic on the bus.

SIRENS WAIL

God!

This is not how you're meant to have your wedding evening, is it?

Stuck on the...don't know even what it is, was going to say A14

but we're in France, so I don't know what it is...a...Z25?

We're stuck on it. For...for what, car accidents can take, like, hours.

# Driving home for Christmas... #

After two long hours, the traffic slowly started to move again.

But a cheeky peek at the sat nav

brought little joy to the Christmas party.

It's apparently six hours from here and coming off the motorway is

taking an extra hour, so, erm, I think we are

going to get there at 4am which means

we have been travelling in this coach for 24 hours.

3am in the Alps...six hours after the hold up

and the coach hit yet another problem.

Bronte was not one to make a mountain out of a molehill

but this problem actually was a mountain.

We've been travelling for 25 hours

and now I've been told we're on the wrong side of the mountain.

-We are meant to be literally... whoop...

-And it's eight degrees.

..and it's eight degrees.

# Driving home for Christmas... #

After an exhausting 28-hour coach journey...

# Driving home for Christmas... #

..Bronte finally arrived in Saas Fee,

and with just four hours left till the wedding ceremony.

We're finally here.

Christmas is a very special time of year and you need to look right,

especially if you're getting married at Christmas.

And in any ordinary situation, brides would have choices.

But as ever on Don't Tell The Bride, it's the groom making

all the decisions and that's not always a good thing.

Ah...another jumper.

After admitting to not being a fan of her kids' favourite film,

Emma was in for a surprise when she went to see her dress.

We'll see now.

I feel really sick.

Tell me when you're ready.

-I'm ready.

-You ready?

-I'm ready.

My God...

Oh, my God!

It's blue!

SHE GASPS

Oh, God.

That's right, Steve had decided to give this ice queen

a blue wedding dress for her wedding day.

What's going through his head?

Why...why on earth a blue dress?

I can't believe it. I can't believe it.

Why on earth? I'm shaking.

Why has he picked me a blue dress?

What do you think everybody's going to think, though,

when they turn around and they see her in a blue wedding dress?

All the family, their jaws are just going to drop, aren't they?

Oh, my poor daughter.

But against all the odds, while the dress was blue...

Oh, wow!

..the bride wasn't.

Oh, gosh!

It actually does look really beautiful.

It's beautiful, honestly, love. The colour really suits you.

We have got something else to go with the gown

-that he has decided on.

-What's he decided?

-This is getting more and more princessy.

-It is, isn't it?

THEY LAUGH

-What on earth is going on?

-That really makes it! Emma, oh, gosh.

-It suits you.

-I'm really shocked.

In New York, after her hen-do debacle, Alice was

hoping for some Christmas cheer when it came to her dress reveal.

I just hope that something goes right today...

-Yeah.

-..something has to.

Oh, God!

Oh, my God, it's short.

-There's a train but it's short at the front?

-Yes.

We have something else...surprise.

Yeah, surprise!

Don't worry about crying, girls, because it's so bad, it's funny!

Yup... Juan must have had his Mad Hatter's hat on

when he chose this dress!

Don't even pretend that it's nice.

-No, it's not.

-No.

It's not. What a monstrosity.

It literally couldn't be worse, could it? It's just...

-It's like a pantomime special, isn't it?

-Oh, dear.

I cannot believe how horrible it is. It's just...tat.

-You can literally see my

-BLEEP

No, but do you know what I mean?!

It feels like cheap toilet roll.

-It's awful.

-Aww!

It's the one thing I wanted him to get right

and he's just taking the piss.

Without even consulting Juan, Alice decided to give herself

an early Christmas present and swap his dress for one she DID like!

Oh!

I look pretty!

With a grin as wide as a Cheshire Cat,

Alice was finally ready for her big day.

-You feel happy in that?

-Yeah.

But if there's one dress reveal we all remember...

Hi there.

..it's Rosie's.

And after forgetting Flower Friday, Nick HAD to get this one right.

Oh, God, don't, it's in there.

It's not a body bag, Rosie!

Oh, my God.

Follow me, Rosie.

Going to see it for the first time, OK?

Oh, my God.

I'm so sorry but I hate it.

It's just not what I'd have picked at all.

I don't really know...

Tell me.

I just hate all the way this...

I didn't want any bling across the top of it at all.

Going to have a lace-up back.

Oh, my God. It's horrible.

That colour is vile.

-It's horrible!

-Ssh.

Calm down. Come on.

It's horrible, everything with it is horrible.

Get some fresh air a minute? Yeah?

I want to punch him so hard in the face,

I hate him so much at the minute.

He wouldn't have done it on purpose to upset you,

just honestly, go back in and take a big deep breath and just put it on

and let us see you in it.

You really might have a completely different take on it

once it's on you.

We've promised her to be honest, so if it looks really awful,

I'll say to her. "I see what you mean, it looks awful."

What, from standing behind me?

Deep breathing.

Rosie...

You look beautiful.

I don't like the colour that he's put in the back of it.

That must have to blend with something.

I don't need to blend with anything.

I'm a bride, I don't need to blend in.

-You know you look hot.

-I don't.

I don't even want to marry him.

Mum, I just want to get out of here. I want to get out of here.

Rose, come on.

I don't want to be here any more.

But with just 24 hours left to the wedding,

big sister Jess had a heart to heart with Rosie

and managed to pull off the impossible.

I'm just going to go with what he's got.

I just obviously need it taken in cos he obviously thinks I'm fat.

He's got me a bigger size than I need, but other than that...

-You're going to with it?

-Yeah.

-Yay!

-I still feel angry towards him.

-But why?

He'll get it. Or he won't get it and that's my punishment.

Six hours after she arrived,

Rosie left with the same dress she started with.

'Tis the season to be jolly

and after three long weeks, the wedding morning has arrived.

Now our brides may have finally seen their dresses,

but still have absolutely no idea

about the festive surprise that awaits them.

Up in the Swiss Alps,

and after a mammoth 28-hour coach drive

and no sleep in two days,

Bronte was preparing for her wedding.

Go, go, go!

And to help brighten up her morning,

Darren had got her some special wedding gifts.

Oh, sexy wedding socks!

What shoes are you going to wear if you've got these?

Am I going to be wearing mountain boots?

Oh, my God!

You're snow-boarding!

Oh, my God!

I've never been on skis before!

Oh, my God, Bronte!

What the hell?!

I just have no idea what's going through his mind right now.

I really don't.

I'm really hurting, like painful. Ow.

OK, they're in.

It will be like taking Godzilla down the aisle.

Nice one, Dad(!)

Back in Blighty, Nick had booked professional hair stylists

to give Rosie a specific look for their Christmas-themed wedding.

Right, what he wants you to have is your hair extensions put in,

-some frills...

-Frills!

-..put through.

-Not really big curls.

-Yeah.

Just maybe a little bit flicky at the end.

OK.

But half an hour and several curls later,

Rosie was unhappy with Nick's choice of hairstyle.

We need to put you in the dress soon, so stop...

Come on.

Let's wash your hair, let's get these extensions out.

She doesn't want it curled, she wants it flicky,

and they're curling it.

She's saying, "I don't want it curled," and they're still doing it.

I don't want them big ringlet chavvy curls,

all I wanted was flicks, how I normally have it on my hair.

All of a sudden, Rosie made a bolt for the door!

She has just had a massive fit.

We're waiting to find out what's going on.

With emotions running high,

it was down to sister Jess to convince Rosie to come back inside.

She's really, really upset at the moment, doesn't want to go.

She feels rubbish in herself, doesn't feel nice.

Me and Laura have had a word with her

and we're trying to calm her down, so we're going to go and try

and sort it all out. We need about 10 minutes to get sorted, yeah.

While Nick's choice of hairstyle was not on Rosie's Christmas list,

Ice Queen Emma was about to discover

that Steve had almost got her what she wanted for Christmas.

I would have loved a horse and carriage

but in this weather I think that's a bad idea.

# Rudolph!

# Rudolph! #

Oh, my God!

What the hell is that?

Right, so what's going on, then?

-BLEEP

-reindeers and everything!

-Is it far?

-Not far now.

-A short sleigh ride.

-Really?!

Not quite horse and carriage at all, no.

I'm so cold!

Don't even know where I am!

I'm on a sleigh in this weather,

in a dress, and people are just looking, thinking, "Oh, my God!"

This is ridiculous.

All we need now is for the reindeer to start to poo.

It might have been ridiculous

but at least Emma had some form of transport.

In New York, Alice had to take care of it herself

as she tried to hail a taxi to her Christmas wedding

in Central Park, during rush hour.

Taxi!

Not the ideal way to start your trip down the aisle.

Dude!

They are always off duty.

Could we go to Central Park South, Avenue of the Americas?

As she crawled 150 blocks to Central Park through heavy

New York traffic, Juan's lack of organisation was beginning to tell.

I can't bear this! It's all taking too long.

Back in the Alps, Bronte might have thought

her travelling was behind her.

Going to take forever!

But it quickly became apparent

that this bride still had a mountain to climb!

This journey is never-ending!

You said it, Bronte.

How many people have travelled so far, 28 hours on the coach for this?

I'm so tired. I can't do this.

After a taxi, a ferry, 28 hours on a coach

and a trek up a mountain in ski boots,

Bronte was finally about to find out

what Darren had in store for her.

It's going to have to be here.

It does make sense considering how we went...

We went to the ice bar for your hen do.

-It's freezing!

-Let's go, you're about to see Darren.

I need my coat on.

With Bronte running half an hour late,

Darren and the 40 other guests

could only stand and wait in subzero temperatures.

I'm so excited and anxious, I'm just getting impatient now

and I want Bronte to come in. Three weeks has been a killer.

Trouble was, after hiking all the way up the mountain,

she now had to hike back down into the heart of the glacier.

It's freezing!

At the moment, it's meaningful, it may not be meaningful

if I fall down the stairs.

Darren, where's the edge?

-How many stairs are there?

-Are we there?

I don't want to do it any more. I just want to be there.

It's freezing! I just want to see Darren.

-Freezing our breath.

-It's cold, I don't like being underground.

It's freaking me out. I've come so far in the three weeks.

I just want to see him.

Finally, after probably the longest walk down the aisle in history,

Bronte had made it!

BRONTE SOBS

You're fine, you're fine.

I went on a 28-hour coach journey.

Yes! I kind of know that!

Darren, will you love Bronte,

honour and care for her, each and every day?

I will.

Bronte, will you love Darren, honour and care for him?

I will. Just about.

Just about!

It was worth the journey cos it was absolutely amazing,

but I would never, ever do that again!

Temperatures were not much higher at Steve's wedding to Emma

at an indoor ski slope.

Thank you so much, everybody.

Aw, thank you.

What were you thinking?

-I love you.

-I love you too.

This ring symbolises my commitment to you, my soulmate, Emma.

I give you this ring...

..as a token of my love for you.

This ring symbolises my commitment to you, my soulmate, Steven.

Emma, you may now kiss or punch the groom.

Punch, Emma, punch!

I want to punch you!

In Brighton, Rosie had finally managed to sort her hair

and had arrived at Nick's Christmas-themed wedding.

Ice rink? I can't ice skate.

-It's snowing.

-Is it actually?

-Where's it coming from, though?

-I don't know but it is snowing.

Oh, my God, he's making me go on an ice rink, isn't he?

No, he's not, he's got a path laid on.

As she walked down the aisle,

the tears and tantrums of the past three weeks were forgotten

as Rosie was finally reunited with her Saint Nick.

Nick, do you take Rosie to be your partner, friend and soulmate?

I do.

And Rosie, do you take Nick

to be your partner, friend and soulmate?

I do.

Rosie, I give you this ring as a symbol of my love.

Nick, you may kiss your beautiful bride.

CHEERING

Over in New York, Alice had finally managed

to get through the busy rush hour traffic.

But she still had one little stop to make on her way to the ceremony -

the Alice in Wonderland statue that had inspired Juan

to have the wedding in New York.

Such a beautiful idea.

It is.

Now I get why he's chosen here.

And after three weeks that had been more nightmare than fairy tale,

this bride was finally in Wonderland!

Now, Alice, it was Juan's dream to give you a fairytale wedding,

even though you may feel you've fallen down the rabbit hole.

Yeah!

-I, Juan, take you, Alice.

-To be my wife.

To be my wife.

I, Alice, take you, Juan.

-To be my husband.

-To be my husband.

To have and to hold.

It's all right.

To have and to hold.

Juan, Alice, here in the heart of New York City,

in the presence of these witnesses,

I pronounce by the authority of the State of New York,

Juan, Alice, you are now married!

CHEERING

And awaiting Alice was a New York chic reception

based on the Lewis Carroll fantasy tale.

Oh, my God!

Juan!

-Come on.

-It's spectacular!

-Oh, my goodness, it's amazing.

-This is the cake.

Oh, wow, it's beautiful!

Look who it is.

-Alice and Juan!

-It's me and you!

Look at me! Oh, Juan, this is so beautiful.

It's beautiful!

You got the dress so wrong, but you got everything else so right.

-I think it looks cool.

-It's perfect.

-I'm glad you're happy.

It doesn't look cool. It is epic. The word is "epic".

It is epic!

In the Alps, Bronte had come back down the mountain...

Aww! Look at it.

..to see Darren's Christmas apres-ski themed reception.

You've done such a good job. I can't believe you've actually done this.

It's amazing. It's beautiful.

-Merry Christmas.

-Merry Christmas.

Thank you, it's beautiful.

Steve's ice cool reception has also gone down a treat!

Mum, it looks beautiful.

-Look at the cake.

-Oh, my word!

-It's got lights. That's ice.

-Never.

-With a rose inside!

Oh, my God, he's thought about all this.

This is so beautiful.

I am so shocked. I never would have thought you'd have pulled this off.

-Unbelievable.

-You did amazing. You have.

Even Nick had managed to melt Rosie's heart

with his winter wonderland reception.

# It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

# Everywhere you go... #

Oh, wow.

-It smells like Christmas.

-It does, doesn't it?

This is lovely.

Oh, how cute is that?!

I'm really proud of it.

-Do you like it?

-I love it.

And you know, if I didn't like it, I'd tell you I don't like it.

It's amazing.

And with a special reference to her late father...

What your dad was called, wasn't it? His nickname.

..Rosie finally had a Christmas to cherish.

Done it all for you.

Aww!

So that's it for our look back at Don't Tell The Bride's

greatest festive moments.

There were tears, there were traffic jams,

there were some terrible bits of decision making.

But in the end, each and every one of our couples had themselves

a very merry Christmas,

and I hope your Christmas is as happy as theirs turned out to be.

See you next time!

Next time, we relive the maddest...

# Nice day for a white wedding... #

That's horrible!

-..baddest...

-What the...?

-She'll be fuming.

You're going to break her heart.

..most dangerous moments...

Oh, my God.

..ever seen on Don't Tell The Bride.

# You'd better watch out

# You'd better not cry

# Better not pout

# I'm telling you why

# Santa Claus is coming to town

# Santa Claus is coming to town

# Santa Claus is coming to town

# Santa Claus is coming to town Oh, yeah!

# Santa Claus is coming to town

# Santa Claus is coming to town... #