A Surbiton couple have spoken of their special day after becoming one of the first couples to get married at Kingston’s Guildhall.

Emma, 46, and Gary Lucas, 51, tied the knot at the Guildhall on Friday, October 30, last year, the same month wedding services moved from the Kingston Register Office in Coombe Road.

For the past six months, Kingston couples have been able to get married in the renovated magistrates’ court at the Guildhall, an opportunity too good to miss for Mrs Lucas, who works for Kingston Council as a human resources manager.

Some of her wedding guests even found themselves, unexpectedly, in the dock.

She said: “I can’t remember how it came about really, but I wanted to be first. It seemed to just go in such a flash really, I don’t think we quite made that.

“My boss said, ‘I think you should get married here,’ and I just laughed, but then I just thought actually it’s in the centre of Kingston. I think once we saw it, it made all the difference. We knew we made the right decision.”

With Mrs Lucas a widow and her husband-to-be a divorcee, the couple at first found themselves struggling for options when searching for a venue.

Having been together for seven years, they opted for a simple wedding, with about 25 guests gathering at the Guildhall for the ceremony.

Mrs Lucas said: “You’re kind of stuck as to where you can go, you can’t do a church wedding.

“In some ways it was nice to be waving out the window and we had all our photos taken down by the river. It was quite simple but it was very special.

“They just put us at ease, they were very friendly and there was no rush. It was just very relaxed. Some of the guests could sit in the dock.”

The former Kingston Register Office in Coombe Road closed its doors in October last year.

The three-storey Edwardian building was sold to a developer earlier this year to be converted into 14 luxury flats.

Kingston Council is hosting a wedding fair on Sunday, April 3 from 11am to 3pm.