Bateman's Barn ticked all of our boxes & many, many more!
We had three key criteria when looking for the perfect venue for our special day. Firstly, a place that allowed us sole occupancy, allowing our guests to wander and enjoy socialising without 'non guests' present. Secondly, we wanted somewhere that allowed us to choose the food we desired, rather than being tied into a set menu. Finally, a venue that had a special location for a religious blessing that meant our guests didn't have to travel between locations. We found Bateman's Barn and knew straight away it ticked all of our boxes and many, many more!
To say that Nicole knows her stuff when it comes to weddings would be a huge understatement - there was no idea that phased her! She wanted us to have exactly what we had dreamt of and we knew she was going to work her hardest to make our dreams a reality.
We didn't just have a wedding 'day', on top of the numerous visits to see the venue and discuss ideas with Nicole, the set up day was stress free and full of fun. We were joined by close friends, family and of course Nicole and John to make everything look perfect. It allowed all those ideas we found on Pinterest to finally come together as a wonderful reality.
The venue leant itself perfectly to being filled with our wide array of homemade decorations and personalised touches. The rehearsal was vital, the bridal party blubbed dramatically as they practiced walking down the aisle, but this meant we got most of the unnecessary tears out of the way before the real thing! There were no mishaps or panic, just a relaxed and productive day, this was in no small part down to Nicole and John's cool, calm and understanding nature.
We couldn't put into words how special and memorable our wedding day was - every bit was a slice of heaven. The weather was beautiful, warm sunshine allowed us to have our blessing in some of the Minster ruins, this felt so special and is something other venues just couldn't match. Our guests were able to enjoy canapés and locally brewed lager as they smiled for photographs while the harpist played a Disney setlist!
The wedding breakfast was delicious, we had a hog roast provided by MB catering, who worked incredibly well with Nicole and her team ensuring nobody wanted for anything. As soon as there was an empty jug, it was filled, plates were cleared and tables kept clean ready to toast the speeches.
Everybody had told us that our wedding day would go by in a blur, but we can't agree. Our day is now a vivid, long lasting memory and Bateman's Barn have a lot to do with that, as neither of us had a single worry all day (except for Shane nervously anticipating his grooms speech!). We had full confidence that any problem would be resolved and when our dessert provider unfortunately got stuck in a traffic jam making her over an hour late, Nicole came to the rescue! She rescheduled the day meaning guests were none the wiser and everything actually worked out for the best.
For our evenings entertainment we had Lee Vann, Norfolks one man band. He was unbelievable and got every one of our one hundred and thirty guests up and dancing from start to finish. We even had a dance off, the hokey cokey and a drum solo from one of the ushers!
Once all our guests had safely departed we retired to our luxurious room in the farm house - it was so lovely to have fluffy gowns to wear whilst chatting about our day together. The next morning all of our immediate wedding party plus those staying overnight in the lovely rooms met back at the barn for breakfast. Nicole provided a hearty three course breakfast before pointing us in the right direction for a sunny walk across the fields. It was a wonderful way to end the most magical experience.
Thank you Nicole, John and all the staff for not only making us feel welcome, but special, unique and valued. We couldn't have had our dreams realised anywhere else!
We look forward to visiting again soon to reminisce, love Abbi and Shane
