10:15am Tuesday 12th August 2008
By Ian McDonald
STAFF at a Weymouth chip shop came to the rescue when a catering no-show threatened to ruin a happy couple's wedding day.
James and Hannah Kirkby were left high and dry when caterers failed to show up for their reception in Portesham.
Hannah's mum Katy Phillips leapt into action and went about arranging some replacement food for 52 hungry guests.
Luckily Marlboro restaurant co-owner Mike Johnson came up trumps and dished up fish and chips for everyone.
Mrs Phillips, 44, said: "It could've been disastrous but the Marlboro really saved the day.
"The fish and chips were with us within the hour. They thought of everything, they even sent big bottles of ketchup and vinegar and pots of salt."
Chef James, 24, and receptionist Hannah, 21, of Dorchester Road - who have been engaged since Christmas - tied the knot at St Martin's Church in Martinstown.
Everything was going swimmingly, apart from the wet weather, until the wedding party headed to Portesham Village Hall for the reception.
Mrs Phillips, from Weymouth, said the caterers were still nowhere to be seen when she arrived nearly an hour later.
"It was clear they weren't coming," she said. "So I got in the car with my brother-in-law and we drove around, desperately trying to get a signal on my mobile.
"We tried the Kings Arms in Portesham but their chef had just gone home, so we tried the Lugger Inn in Chickerell."
Landlord John Parker had just catered for 60 guests - and didn't have enough food left to help - but he got in touch with his pal Mike Johnson at the Marlboro.
He and his staff promptly prepared 48 portions of fish and chips and four vegetarian orders for the Kirkby wedding in double-quick time.
Mrs Phillips, a pastoral support worker at Conifers Primary School in Weymouth, said the food arrived in polystyrene boxes to keep it hot.
"We had these giant gold charger plates so we had the fish and chips in their papers on those," she said.
"We did the wedding reception backwards. We had chocolate profiteroles to start, then the speeches and the toasts and fish and chips to finish.
"Everyone really enjoyed it and got into the spirit of things, the ushers were there handing all the food out.
"We were nearly left with a lot of hungry guests but it was quite funny in the end. James and Hannah had a lovely day."
The happy couple, who met after winning the parts of Danny and Sandy in Grease while at Budmouth Technology College, are now enjoying their honeymoon in Tenerife.
Mr Johnson, who runs the Marlboro in St Edmund Street, Weymouth with brother Vince, said: "They phoned us about 4pm and by 5pm they had their fish and chips.
"Luckily because the weather was so bad it was fairly quiet in the shop and we were more than happy to help.
"We've done some big orders in our time but 52 people like that was definitely a first."
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