Bride brings wedding forward so ill dad can walk her down aisle

VICTORIA Owen had one goal for her wedding, which was to make sure her father could walk her down the aisle.

- BETHANY GAVAGHAN

Living with end-stage pulmonary fibrosis, her dad's health made time feel urgent, so she didn’t wait about to celebrate her special day with him and all her other family members and friends on Saturday.

Instead of a quiet register office ceremony, Victoria, 53, from Tonypandy, married her partner, Hugh Williams, at Hermon Chapel in Treorchy, the same chapel where her parents, Frank and Jennifer Pumford, tied the knot 54 years ago.

The historic building hadn't hosted a wedding in more than 30 years, making the day a particularly special family moment, which Victoria has described as “perfect”.

Speaking after the wedding, she said: “It was perfect. My dad walked me down the aisle and lasted well into the evening.

“We feel lucky because the day before he was really unwell and I was still thinking I hope he’s going to be OK to walk down but he was there, not until the end but as far as he could go into the night which was amazing.