The difference between an Irish wedding and an English wedding.

[hollyisalovelyname]

Just that. Is the format the same?
Are they different?
Are they similar?
I've never been to a UK wedding.

Gosh 7to25 - I'd forgotten that about the gifts being on display at the house - (I left Ireland over 20 years go) - I was massively surprised when I first came to England, that you just bring the present with you on the day to hand over to the couple.

Um food not especially memorable but plentiful (ham sandwiches mostly, then cake ) drink beer, whisky or gin. The latter two often with lemonade.
Very multi-generational, lots of kids. Never been to a child-free Irish wedding!
Good music (of course) But singing ? So-so. Depends on how late in the evening it is.

Oooh RE gift money £25-100 is normal here.

That is £25 for friends/cousins . £50 for close family/best friends. I can't afford £100 but if I could I would for those closest to me.

Ham sandwiches?

Every Irish wedding I've ever been to is a sit down meal, usually at five courses!

You'd get sandwiches, pub grub platters at 11.30 maybe.

DH's family are country people. Farmers, mostly, and they like ham.
I may be going back a few years

YY to ham sandwiches. At about 02:30. Something to keep the guests occupied with as the bands swap over.

In my experience the main dofference is the numerous irish weddings I have been to have a pay bar. In the UK the weddings we attend would be an open bar.

Quite embarrassing the first Irish wedding I attended with only enough cash for a taxi home and no atm available!

Oh and going to the pub in-between! At all Irish weddings ive been to pwople to to a pub not related to the wedding venie for a few drinks after the ceremony before the reception.
In the Uk people go straight to the venue from the church.

Ive lost the power to spell or edit my post.
Typing whilst feeding.

Thanks all.

In Ireland the weddings are at least a two day event. The meal is the full 5 courses, you buy your own drink apart from the wine with the meal, the fathers of the bride and groom will usually buy a round for everyone. The sit down meal is usually around 6pm and goes on until around 8pm - 8.30pm depending on the length of the speeches.

The band then plays for a few hours, then there's finger food - sandwiches, cocktail sausages, vol au vents, etc, the disco starts around midnight and goes on for a few hours, then people join in in a sing song.

In some parts of the country, mostly along the west coast in rural areas, neighbours light a number of bonfires between the bride's house and church and again they normally light a bigger bonfire shortly after the couple leave the church after the ceremony, it's done to wish them good luck.

The following day there's round two and if the weather is fine then there's usually a bbq or lunch out.

I've been church of Ireland and Catholic weddings in Ireland and church of England and civil ceremonies in England and the biggest difference was that the English wedding services didn't go on for 7 hours or so! :)

I'm Irish and I have been to countless weddings here in Ireland and to quite a fair few in England.

There seems to be a depressing common theme in the main differences between Irish in English weddings, those differences being that the Irish seem to drink their heads off at a wedding (I concur with this, i.e. The needing a drink before the ceremony, the need for a couple after the wedding mass and by the time people are sitting down to the (usually) massive dinner around 5 or 6 many many people are already plastered.

Why is this?? Genuine question. Why do the Irish like to get tanked at weddings??

And secondly the almost over generous gift giving. People would rather give more than they can reasonably afford for fear of the ultimate sin of being perceived as tight with their money. I have seen gifts inc cash gifts that have been embarrassing in their scale, and it just ups the ante for everyone else, £200 cash gifts are not at all unusual and yet many folk struggle to afford this but do it anyway as it's been as the norm.

Just to add I had the classic Irish wedding, too many guests, many of whom I didn't even know, too much drinking and ending at 6am in the bar. I look back on it now and wish I had had something more personal and meaningful.