Monday 1 June

D minus twelve.

Tuesday 2 June

D minus eleven. Mike sent me his invitation list. He has met Sharon at the school. Most of the details now seem agreed, bar the cost. But I think I am now safe to send out invitations.

Wednesday 3 June

D minus ten. Sharon Parker sent us photos of the school café to be used for the wedding reception. I appointed Dan as MC for the reception — ad what a good job he did! Martin sent his his accommodation suggestions for inclusion on the attachment to the email invitations. Angala and Neil offer Neil's pre-war Bentley as the bridal car. Martin asks me to send Liz my proposed wording for the invitation, which she is preparing. Colin Crabbe from St Clement's says he can provide a drum kit for Caleb, an input for Stu's guitar. The school's Business Manager, Kieren Hasler, is bac from leave but preoccupied with building work. However, now I have contact with him we can sort things out in coming days.

I sent copies of the Alma Place site plans to Nick Bradley. Man from Angel Coatings came to estimate for covering the whole of Alma Place: £70 per square metre,so between £7,000 and £10,000 depending on what area would be covered. No-one enthusiastic.

Thursday 4 June

D minus nine. Email from Catherine Lopez at Hautvillers: it's too late to get Lopez-Martin Champagne shipped to England, so I'll have to buy locally. Email from Rosie; between her and Shiri they misunderstood the time of the wedding, so Rosie had booked a B&B for the wrong night and Shiri had decided she and Levi would make theirs a day trip. I book up for the three of them in a nearby Premier Inn. Email from aroline. Her proposed band, Ensemble Concertante led by Emma Alexandra, is finding difficulties. In the event we go for another band: Biff Bang Pow. Sharon wants the table plan as soon as possible. I send Caroline for her agreeement draft invitation wording and text style based on what i used for Anna's wedding. I propose an action meeting for the coming Sunday. Merrilyn tells me there is still doubt about the School' willingness to host the reception, so asks me to delay sending te invitations. Caroline sends me her guest list. Now settled that Debbie Rawlins Dashwood and her band Biff Bang Pow will play in the evening. Caroline asks me to ask Tony Carter to play clarinet and sax for us in the secret garden. Agreed that Dan will help Jo with decoartion on Friday. All my young oness will camp in thee site near the reception venuue. Then caroline will behelped to dress in my rom at Sandbn=nks hotelafter she and Mike have been baptised in the sea. We agree on Jeremiah Clark's The Trumpet Voluntary for bidal n=entryand Widor;s Toccata for the recession.

Friday 5 June

D minus eight. Martin sends me Liz Nicoll's three drfat invitations and I select one. Sharon confirms the School as the venue! Phew. I can onow personalise an email te invitations. Peoplee are starting to ask about a wedding presentt list. Of course thre isn't one. I am advising them not to worry about preents but to send money i fthey really want to.

Saturday 6 june

D minus seven. Dan asks me for contact details of all guests, a he wants to ask thme for music suggestions.he plans acomputer-held set of dance music. liam aks about local airports and transport.

Sunday 7 June

D minus six. I had asked that a meeting be convened to discuss the wedding plans. Sunday midday seemed possible, so the Storeys had invited me for lunch. Caught the 8:20am ferry and drove to St Clement's Church. Joined in (late) the 9:30am Holy Communion. Met Jonathan Foster, the vicar who had agreed to marry Caroline and Mike. Joined Merrilyn and Martin, Mike's parents,who came for the 11:00am family service. Then a very nice lunch in their garden looking over Poole with glimpses of the harbour.Martin tried out his BB skills wit marinated salmon: very tasty. We got a little way with the plans: the reception venue was by then almost settled! Six days to go. i left at our,planning to catch the ferry at five, but missed that by half an hour. Traffic jam on the Ringwood Road. Must find another route! Caroline has identified Josh Ward as photogrpher.

Monday 8 June

D minus five. I postpone a meeting I had set with my bank manager! John Hymus emails asking for accommodation and venue details; he and his wife Pauline are travelling by car from Germany. Josh asks for advice on makeup of group photos. Martin tells me that the order of service is now agreed; document available. Jo asks me to approve her cost estimates. I say it's too late for estimates; let's just go for it. Dan is getting to grips with the MC role, making good suggestions and gaining Mike's confidence.

Tuesday 9 June

D minus four. Jo asks me to encourage people to bring fairy lights. UR promises a couple of hundred. Martin discusses the itinerary for the Bentley. Josh raises important concerns about group photos late in the evening when light may be failing. I document and circulate key discussion with Kieren Hasler, the School's business manager. Dana suggests saving time by having speeches before the end of the meal: agreed. Kirnen asks for table layout so he can know how to set up and can have suffiicient linen laundered. Sharon sends the menu for approval: approved. Cousin June invites me to supper on the wedding eve. I put Tony carter (clarinet and sax) in touch with MC Dan. I put Dan in touch with Josh Ward (photographer) so they can get details agreed. Martin gives me final proposals for wedding cars. Mike tells me he has arranged for German lager and local cheese for the evening. Kieren advises me we shall need more wine. Agreed and ordered from Majestic; they haven't enough stock at Poole so will bring more in from Southampton. Max (best man) circulates plan for the male team, including breakfast, changing location, timing etc. I send Kieren the table plan. Debbie's band Biff Bang Pow engaged.

Wednesday 10 June

D minus three. Kieren approves table plan. Kieren agrees he'll meet bridal party at the secret garden, and comment on running order. Dan tells me Rosie's misunderstanding over timetable man she'll have to leave early. To avoid that I book her, Shiri and Levi into a Premier Inn for the Saturday night. Gill at the church tells me she needs the fees in specific denominations of cash on the day before the wedding.

Thursday 11 June

D minus two. Dribble of new guest invitations over past days means revision to table plan and one additional long table. Current guest count is 121. Kieren agrees to provide high chairs. Major upset to table plan. Young lovers now want family groups to sit together. Total numbers now up to 141 including eleven on top table.

Friday 12 June

D minus one. Mike came tot Sandbanks Hotel in the van to collect me. We drove on with B&F to Majestic to pick up the wine, then on to Tesco with our young advisors for soft drinks. Kieren asks for half the fees on the day; I'll bring my cheque book. I ask Kieren to include an announcement about late night taxisin his H&S briefing on the day. I leave Yarmouth at noon, after final tweaks to the table plan, arrive and greet cousins at Sandbanks. it's on automatic pilot now.

Saturday 13 June

Wedding Day

Caroline and Mike's wedding day. Anna calls me down to the beach for the baptism soon after half past six. Breakfast with the cousins, Caroline and Anna. Caroline and Anna use my room for dressing. Neil gets the Bentley caught in traffic so we (Caroline, Anna and I) decide to drive up to Kinson in my car. Brides maids are being dressed and prepared: Merriln' house is the female strs onghold. Neil and Angela divert there, so all is well. For what happens next, click the green link. After the celebrations, I return Chris Temple and Les Turner to their B&B around half past nine, and take Paul Newman on to Parkstone Station. Then I retire thankfully to bed.

Sunday 14 June

Breakfast with Rosie, Shiri and Levi, cousins, who then leave for home. I relax in the seaside bar till Dan suggests meeting up. Then Caroline and mike turn up and invite us all to Maz's house for a party. I get away by three thirty. I'm home by seven, and flop into bed.

Monday 15 June

A quiet day

Tuesday 16 June

PD exercises as usual. Went on to Hythe to pay Mike Noble for his organ playing at the wedding

Wednesday 17 June

Wightlink meeting at Yarmouth Harbour, 6:00pm. Met charming female marketer in the sunshine. Put across the idea that one daily late night ferry be re-introduced; that should encourage islanders to attend mainland evening functions and thus increase ferry income

Thursday 18 June

Caught 8:50am ferry with the Luthers. Drove us all to Hounsdown School for morning and afternoon Explore workshops. We all had supper together at Seapie Corner. An interesting day

Friday 19 June

Blood test with Carol Farrell at Brookside. All OK. Joined the usuals at happy hour

Saturday 20 June

Another day of catching up

Sunday 21 June

Resumed my interrupted regular attendance at King's Head quiz evening

Monday 22 June

Checked my meds with Tim the chemist. Tim is skeptical about alternative remedies, disagreeing with Murelle from Harveys. Tim thinks I must start on Madopar, but I won't.

Tuesday 23 June

PD exercises as usual. On to lunch with Sarah and Rex at the nerve centre. Met Charlie, who has his problems. We all had a good chat.

Wednesday 24 June

Thursday 25 June

Caught the 11:05 ferry with Jay. Drove him to the MCA in Southampton for his lantern test. Sadly he failed: 8/10 on the near lights test and 5/10 on the distant test. That means not only can he not take the harbour taxi job but cannot work in any commercial deck watch job on the water. After that we went onto find Jay's father in Romsey. Then to the Lord Nelson in Hythe for a late beer and sandwich lunch. At least Jay has his father's short birth certificate so can get on the his passport application

Friday 26 June

Happy hour as usual. Met Mark and Mary Hall. Mark is Commodore. On the Island they live at Bouldnor; on the mainland they run a soft fruit farm in Wokingham. It appears they vaguely know (or at least have heard of) Richard Gadd. Certainly they know the fifty acre farm he uses for his car boot sale. Mark knew the chap who sold the farm to Richard. Also found June Mary Smith, who was friendly, and met Sylvia Mence, former club treasurer, formidable. And Sue Burgin (on the stairs). Home by eight for pasty and peppers

Saturday 27 June

Took ferry and train to Winchester for lunch with Pauline. I had been entranced by her smiling face at the baptism and wedding. Everyone says she is a lovely person, so I had wanted to find out why! Pauline had a date with Adrian later so left at two or so, whist I went on to walk by the canal and up St Catherine's Hill. It was petty hot. Good views and orchids though. Later, about seven. Called on a neighbour for a glass of wine and a chat. Bed early after an enjoyable but tiring day.

Sunday 28 June

Another quiet day at home

Monday 29 June

A quiet day at home

Tuesday 30 June

PD exercises as usual. Had intended to lunch with Tony Carter, but he had had to cry off: Mary is in hospital with advanced Alzheimer's and complications, so Kate needs Tony's support. Rain check: we'll meet again later, during the school holidays. That gave me a clear lunchtime, so I took the opportunity to visit Caroline in her new home: very nice, with a small garden. Bedrooms for everyone. We had a sandwich lunch together in Coast, a surfers' café nearby. Then back to await Felix and Ben getting home from school. Later it was off to find Merrilyn and Martin at the Sandbanks beach hut they rent for four weeks each summer during school holiday shoulder time for £150 a week. Glorious sunshine. Everyone except me had a swim. Once home here again I put swimming trunks and towel in my blue bag: mustn't get caught out like that again! Curiously, I realised we were on the same stretch of beach where Patti and I had taken the Carters some years back. Then we had parked in the forecourt of Yvonne's mother's house whilst Anna went to see a recommended chiropracter, later joining the rest of us for a swim. I phoned Yvonne, who wanted to talk to Caroline about the wedding. I left at seven, fearing otherwise I might miss the last ferry — but caught it with almost an hour to spare.