The contrast in Irish and Australian weddings.

Video Story's first year in Australia

As a wedding videographer with links to both Ireland and Australia, Video Story’s Killian Mulcahy has been intrigued to observe some of the differences between a typical Irish and Australian wedding. Killian is from Ireland (as you will be quickly be able to work out if you chat with him on the phone!),  he and his Australian wife recently moved to Geelong, Australia. So what were Killian’s observations after filming wedding videos in both countries.

Weather
Although the Irish climate is substantially colder than the Australian climate, there isn’t usually much difference in bridal fashions between the two countries, men arrive in suits and the ladies wear evening dresses rain, hail or shine.



The Ceremony  
Another big difference is timing. Generally, Australian weddings have a faster pace while Irish weddings are a longer affair.  The average Aussie ceremony runs for 20 minutes, an Irish one is much longer and usually goes for at least one hour, including a full Catholic mass.

While in Australia, many weddings are held outdoors, in such places as leafy gardens or stunning sandy beaches. Celebrants read beautiful ceremonies about the Bride and Groom's life and journey together, touching on wonderful stories and how they fell in love. Irish ceremonies and venues are predominantly unchanged: most weddings are held in a church and conducted by a local Priest or Minister, although equally touching ceremonies it's the variety of venues and locations that's different. 

For a wedding to be held in a venue other than a church in Ireland the venue must be approved for ceremonies and the County Registrar of Births, deaths and marriages, who is appointed by the Irish health service, is the only official able to marry a couple in a Civil Ceremony.

Whilst in Australia the number of guests can vary from intimate gatherings to a very large gathering, in Ireland weddings are always big with two to three hundred guests as a standard number.

In Ireland the Bride and Groom will always walk straight down the aisle after the ceremony to great applause and then stop at the front door to greet all the guests and they leave the church and receive their congratulations, a noticeable difference for Killian in Australia, is when the Bride and Groom after the cermony greet the guests as they walk down the aisle.

Ongoing festivities
At an Australian wedding, when the reception package has run it's time and the band begins to unplug their equipment, that’s usually around the time when the Bride and Groom wave their sweet farewells to everyone and the wedding has come to a close.

Yet, not so in Ireland! In fact, that’s usually the time when the dancing is just getting started! An Irish wedding couple along with their guests will be continuing to celebrate long into the morning, never one to miss a party, some even go home the following morning with the post man, there really is no time limit on the reception. 
It used to be the case that the couple would leave early but more recently they realise that there is a lots more fun to be had and the DJ usually kicks in at 12:30am to play for about 2 more hours, with the resulting sing song in the residents bar, tells Killian.  He says last time they were at an Irish wedding as a guest they retired from the sing song at 3am to go back to the hotel room for a cup of tea and wedding cake!

Dancing
Dancing is a big part of any wedding but especially so in Ireland! The band helps create a fun and inclusive atmosphere, as Killian describes.

The band is usually very interactive, finding out who’s birthday it’s been lately or who’s from what part of Ireland and they incorporate this info into the night, it’s just great fun.  
While at Australian weddings, the dancing can take a while to warm up, in Ireland the dancing is almost woven into the DNA of the wedding, including an elaborate and sometimes dizzying dance move called the Paul Jones, where of a circle of women holding hands and dance in one direction, while an enfolding circle of men dance around them, in the opposite direction. When the music stops after about 30 seconds you dance with the person opposite you for a few songs, it's a great way to mix up the crowd. 

How the day runs
A really interesting point of difference between Australian and Irish weddings is the time they are scheduled to begin.
In Australia, weddings can begin within a variety of different times, such as 10am, 2pm, 4pm or even 6pm but in Ireland weddings always begins between 1pm or 2pm.
Also, in Ireland the Best Man may have a busier workload: he’s also the MC on the day, as well as getting the groom to the church on time!!! The variety of the Australian weddings really impressed Killian, he says it's great to go to new venues, new themes and see new ideas for each wedding here in Australia. 

The structure of the evening is also a little different. Irish weddings have a four course dinner followed by speeches. Then everyone leaves the function room and retires to the bar, lounge, foyer or goes for a walk. Band then sets up in the function room and the hotel clears the floor ready for the dancing to begin, this process usually takes 1-1.5 hours. Where as in Australia the pre-dinner drinks, meal, speeches and dancing is all interwoven usually into a 5 hours reception package.

Photography
Although every wedding is different, Killian has noticed the quintessential Australian wedding photography style is more candid than back home.
Also, from a photographer’s or videographer’s point of view, the conditions in Australia are brighter and in most instances, flash isn’t even needed at all.  This means an Australian photographer/videographer has greater possibilities to work with on the day, especially the evening light that has a beautiful color and casts wonderful shadows on the background, the sky is usually blue and around the Geelong/Ballerine region the photos often take place on a beach or near the sea,  he loves his new working environment and working in the sunshine!

Some things remain the same
Whether it's an indoor Irish ceremony officiated by a Priest, with snow falling down outside, or a sunset Aussie wedding along the beach with canapés and candles, the truth is this: the excitement of the wedding remains the same! Everyone loves a wedding and it’s always a pleasure to be part of a couple’s big day, Killian reflects. People come along to a wedding dolled up, happy and looking forward to a good time, "that’s a fantastic atmosphere to work in," says Killian, to wrap up... 

Visit Killian's website at www.videostory.net.au to view his latest weddings and find out more about Video Story or give him a call on 0468 328 283 to hear that lovely Irish accent!


4 comments:

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  2. Many thanks Nicholas very nice of you to reply with such kind comments.
    Killian.

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