A BRIDE and groom tied the knot at a bizarre wedding ceremony just minutes after meeting for the first time yesterday.
The couple exchanged rings and kissed at the altar in a “social experiment” organised by Waterford-based radio station Beat 102-103.
Bebhinn O’Keeffe (25) from Tramore, Co Waterford, was walked down the aisle by her father, where she was introduced to “husband-to-be” Alan Healy (31) from Glenmore, Co Kilkenny.
The event marked the climax of the station’s "Two Strangers and a Wedding” competition, in which more than 85 men and women vied for the chance to get hitched live on air.
As part of their prize, the couple will be flown to Portugal on a two-week honeymoon. They will also be offered a home in Wexford rent-free for a year if they decide to remain together after three months.
However, the “marriage” that took place yesterday will not be recognised by any religion or by the State.
The pair exchanged nervous glances as they hugged and kissed in front of more than 100 family members and friends gathered for the early-morning ceremony in the Hotel Kilkenny.
They were then joined in "marriage" by interfaith minister Angie Alexandra as Nat King Cole's When I Fall In Loveplayed in the background.
Following the event, the groom described his new “wife” as “absolutely smashing”.
Bebhinn admitted she had been almost overwhelmed by the occasion.“When I was walking up the aisle my mind just went blank and my dad had to hold me up.”
She said she felt she “already clicked with Alan” but did not think they would live together straight away.
“I don’t think so, but we’ll be spending a lot of time together and obviously we’ll want to get to know each other a little bit more,” she said. “It’s not going to be a rushed decision,” the bride, who works in event management, said
Alan, a courier who works in Waterford, said he was “nervous, like any groom”, but “very happy I went through with it”.
His family and friends had been “brilliant”, he said.
The couple had chatted on the phone in the days leading up to the wedding but did not learn the identity of their betrothed until yesterday morning.