Weddings, sometimes, make the bride or the groom or both jittery with nerves, and they may even develop cold feet. But saying ‘I do’ 25 meters high above the ground, balanced precariously on a rope, gives a whole new meaning to the word ‘nervous.’ What if the bride or the groom did get a case of the cold feet? What then? Abandon the ceremony mid-rope-walk and come down? They can’t even run away from the jilted party! Thank God, nothing of the sort happened in this wedding, which set the record as the world’s first high wire wedding!
On May Day, professional rope walker Chris Bull and his fiancée Phoebe Baker got hitched over the heads of around 100 wedding guests, including friends and family, who gazed up nervously, as the ceremony took place 25 meters above the ground. The ceremony was held across a valley at Wookey Hole Caves in Somerset, with the bride and the groom balanced precariously on a wire stretched 75 meters across. Chris and Phoebe started at opposite ends of the rope, only to meet in the middle to exchange vows.
Phoebe Baker making her way towards her groom Chris Bull, on a high wire
Image source: Neil Phillips
Thankfully, none of the others of the wedding party were asked to dangle that high above the ground! The unusual ceremony was ordained by a ringmaster friend, who conducted the ceremony from the ground, with a megaphone to be heard high up there! The couple even exchanged rings mid-air, all thanks to a rope pulley. Following the unconventional high wire wedding ceremony, a cabaret-style reception awaited the newlyweds and their guests. The Wookey Hole theater was hired for the same.
Chris Bull, 37, told the Independent,
“We’ve chosen to work with a safety wire, although I can and have performed without, many of our friends and family have said that they would be happier to see us clipped in.”
Chris and Phoebe making their way to safety after the ceremony
Image source: Neil Phillips
The high wire wedding ceremony was truly a nerve-wracking event for the bride’s mum, who suffers from vertigo.
“Phoebe’s Mum is a little nervous as she is not over keen on heights but her father, Rupert Baker, has helped us rig this and other high wires. Phoebe thought it was a crazy idea but to my surprise she was actually up for it!” said Bull, speaking about his 25-year-old wife Phoebe.
He further added,
“It’s not actually legal to sign the register in the air so we have arranged to have a small ceremony in the caves beforehand and then the main wedding even on the wire.”
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Talking about his relationship with Phoebe, Chris said,
“I proposed to Phoebe in Burma and one of the first conversations we had about the wedding was me saying how cool it would be to get married on a high wire. I’d been a rope walker for 12 years and it was something I’d always dreamt about, but I never thought I’d find a wife to agree!”
Chris Bull and Phoebe Baker, the newlyweds
Image source: Neil Phillips
Phoebe, for her part, started practicing on a low wire four years ago when the couple met. She has taken lessons ever since, in preparation for the event that would see them begin a new chapter in their lives.
Currently, Phoebe lives with Chris in an original 1930s showman’s caravan in Hanham, Bristol, said,
“Both of our families are really supportive of our circus lifestyle and we’re looking forward to celebrating a special day together.”
How cute is that!
Our many congratulations to the happy and ‘high’ couple on their unusual nuptials!
Featured image source: Neil Phillips
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