Pink Wedding Days | Gay Marriage and Civil Partnerships Blog

On January 1 st 2016, Estonia became the first former Soviet Republic to legalise civil partnerships.   Only they didn’t, not really. The Estonian Government are now advising same-sex couples not to enter into a civil union until the new law is workable. It appears there are a number of ‘uncertainties’ relating to (but not limited to) inheritance and divorce. In short, the law wasn't ready. Couples are free to go ahead with a civil partnership if they choose, but it isn’t advised, and there’s no indication of how long the legal confusion is expected to last.  It's been a hard won bill; opposition halted its progress both in 2013 and 2014. 

It wasn’t an entirely painless experience this morning: coming back into work after the Christmas holidays, but fortunately after a desperate search  there was a  merciful discovery of candy canes.  They should keep us going until Easter  lunchtime. Potential tooth decay aside, it wasn't the only good bit of news we had today. W e had an email from the UK Blog Awards with news that someone had nominated us.  Exactly. We couldn't believe it, either.  We'd be absolutely thrilled if you'd consider spending 10 seconds and drop us a vote. Just click this link and give us a warm fuzzy feeling inside.  So THANK YOU to whoever it was that nominated us initially, and THANK YOU to anyone that takes the time to vote for us. We'd offer you a candy cane, but they've, err, already gone. 

Here’s hoping that 2016 will be the year when… Kim Davies shuts her mouth and goes away Australia FINALLY gets to start celebrating same-sex marriages. Northern Ireland FINALLY gets to start celebrating same-sex marriages. Equal marriage is passed in more countries Homosexuality is decriminalised in more countries. The Westboro Baptists are recalled to their whack-a-doo mothership. We trust individuals to recognise and realise their own gender at whatever stage of their life they’re at. Gladiators comes back to Saturday night television

The bit between Christmas and New Year is a bit like purgatory. What day is it? Should I be somewhere? Do the bins need to go out?  and Yes! Crack open the Baileys. So we’re going to keep our blog posts dead simple until 2016 (more for our benefit).  We're not officially back in the office until January 5th, so we've just popped our head into the office to remind you of a few things.  You can find out more about Pink Wedding days by clicking here. Feel free to use our online wedding directory , to find your venue or service provider (you don’t have to be gay). In case you didn’t already know: we’re on Facebook  and Twitter . From there, we post updates and news about civil partnerships , engagements, weddings and gay weddings from around the world. We’d love it if you’d follow or subscribe to our blog , too, and that way you’ll never miss an  update. Interested in advertising your wedding business with us? That’s ...

On behalf of everyone at Pink Wedding Days, we’d like to wish all our advertisers, readers and visitors a very Happy Christmas. We’ll be back to normal on January 5 th 2015 , but if you do need to get in touch, then you can find our email on the contact page or drop us a message on Facebook . 

Equal marriage was introduced in England, Wales and Scotland in 2014, but there hasn’t been a same-sex marriage in a Ministry of Defence (MOD) chapel.  The Daily Telegraph reports that MOD chapels have been told they ‘must permit’ same-sex wedding ceremonies.  The MOD has denied this. What we do know is that Defence Minister,   Penny Mordaunt,  has encouraged The Sending Churches (the Christian denominations who send Chaplains to the MOD chapels) to implement the  2014 Marriage (Same-Sex Couples Act) .  Ordinarily, religious groups can opt-out of performing same-sex weddings . For example, the Catholic Church and the Church of England do not allow their premises or their ministers to participate in same-sex weddings. Both of these Churches send chaplains to MOD chapels. Chapels are different, however. They don't come under the same classification as churches, and military chapels are owned by the MOD which does allow ...

Συγχαρητήρια ! The Greek Parliament has approved a same-sex union bill which will give gay couples a greater range of legal rights. The new legislation comes two years after Greece was criticised by the European Court of Human Rights for anti-gay discrimination. The bill was passed with 193 voting in favour and 56 voting against. The Greek Orthodox Church remains vehemently opposed to any legislation that recognises or validates same-sex relationships , and they remain the loudest critics of the new bill. There is still no provision on same-sex couples being able to adopt children. Greek Prime Minister, Alexis Tsipras , said the vote was “a significant day for human rights" , and admitted that the legislation was long overdue. 

It’s been 10 years since the first civil partnerships in the UK. Just for some perspective, 2005 was the year Shane Ward scored a Christmas number 1 with ‘That’s My Goal’.   It was also the year that Prince Charles married Camilla Parker-Bowles, MG Rover went into receivership and Pope John Paul II died. Sadly, it was also the year of the 7/7 bombings in London. YouTube was founded in 2005, too. (How did we ever find videos of cats on skateboards before then?)   10 years is a long time, but it isn’t long enough to justify why it wasn’t done sooner in the UK.  Same-sex couples had limited legal protection before 2005. The importance of the  Civil Partnership Act  was that it shored up the legal rights of individuals as a homosexual couple. It wasn't just about celebrating, about having a ring or having a party, it was about protecting and recognising the right to be together. In the event of a partner's death, a bereavement, an...

It’s hard to believe that we’re about to shut the door on 2015 . This year has been something of a mixed-bag for same-sex couples and their allies. Of course, there have been the big victories in the Republic of Ireland and the USA , but there has been disappointment, too: the lack of progress in Northern Ireland and the repulsive rhetoric coming from the far-right for example.  We thought it would be a good idea to take stock of some of the events and occasions that we’ve reported over the past year.  This certainly isn’t exhaustive, but here are the things that meant something to us in 2015 .  At midnight on December 31 st , same-sex marriage became legal in Scotland. First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, was on hand to act as witness at one of the country’s first ceremonies. Luxembourg held its first gay marriage on January 1 st . Florida became the 36 th US state to say yes to gay marriage after a judicial bar preventing same-sex marr...

Winter is a great time to get married. It’s the season of snowballs, thick socks, and hearty soups in front of warm fires.  We absolutely love winter, and it seems that many of you do, too.  Christmas 2015 is little more than a week away, but we thought we’d jump ahead to Christmas 2016 and 2017, because we want to show you 5 venues that would make a perfect winter wonderland for any couple saying I do . We’re a gay wedding directory , but, as always, you certainly don’t have to be gay to use us. The venues included in Pink Wedding Days are inclusive of all which means they’re all very well versed in the Christmas spirit. Descriptions come from the venue themselves, and for each one you’ll find a link to either a directory page or website. The Founder's Building, Royal Holloway, Surrey.  " The Founder's Building  is a stunning venue nestled within 135 acres of attractive Surrey parkland bordering Windsor Gre...