During 2020, weddings were profoundly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. During periods
of lockdown few weddings could take place, and even afterwards restrictions on how they
could be celebrated remained. To investigate the impact of such restrictions, we carried out
a survey of those whose plans to marry in England and Wales had ...
During 2020, weddings were profoundly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. During periods
of lockdown few weddings could take place, and even afterwards restrictions on how they
could be celebrated remained. To investigate the impact of such restrictions, we carried out
a survey of those whose plans to marry in England and Wales had been affected by COVID19. The 1,449 responses we received illustrated that the ease and speed with which couples
had been able to marry, and sometimes whether they had been able to marry at all, had
depended not merely on the national restrictions in place but on their chosen route into
marriage. This highlights the complexity and antiquity of marriage law and reinforces the
need for reform. The restrictions on weddings taking place also revealed the extent to which
couples valued getting married as opposed to having a wedding. Understanding both the
social and the legal dimension of weddings is important in informing recommendations as to
how the law should be changed in the future, not merely to deal with similar crises but also
to ensure that the general law is fit for purpose in the twenty-first century