Former weather presenter Tania Bryer exclusively invited HELLO! to her wedding to hedge fund manager Rod Barker back in July 2016. The couple tied the knot in Surrey in a beautiful English country wedding at the home of her mother Joy, surrounded by close family and friends including Sarah, Duchess of York, Elizabeth Hurley, Donna Air, Trinny Woodall and Lisa Snowdon. “It was the most magical day, full of warmth and love,” Tania told HELLO!
Tania made her way up the aisle with the Gospel Touch Choir, resplendent in red gowns, singing At Last. Her groom looked overcome by the sight of his beautiful bride in her Amanda Wakeley gown. "The most special moment for me was when Tania appeared at the top of the aisle," said Rod. "She is a beautiful woman anyway, but to see her in that dress, it was such a magical sight. When she walked down the aisle, I really felt I was the luckiest guy in the world."
Bride Tania pictured with wedding guests Elizabeth Hurley and Trinny Woodall
"Amanda made me the dress of my dreams to walk down the aisle to Rod," says Tania, whose shoes were by Yves Saint Laurent. "I could not have imagined anyone else doing it. Amanda is not only an incredibly talented designer but she is also an amazing woman and great friend." Her hair, swept back off her face and cascading down her back, was styled by Neville, while her make-up was by long-time friend Julia Bolino, who flew in from Ibiza specially, and Alice Tidley. Tania wore some antique diamond earrings Rod had given her early on in their relationship as her 'something old'; her 'something borrowed' was a ring on loan from her daughter Francesca, which she wore on her little finger. Her 'new' was the dress itself, while her 'blue' was a ribbon sewn into the inside of the dress.
Preceded just a few moments earlier – to loud applause and cheers – by her mother Joy, in a wheelchair, Tania made her entrance accompanied by her sisters Lisa Bryer, producer of Oscar-winning film The Last King of Scotland, and Lesley King-Lewis, chief executive of the Windsor Leadership Trust, who also wore Amanda Wakeley. With them were Tania’s bridesmaids, all in silver satin. The couple had legally married earlier at Kensington and Chelsea Register Office with their children as witnesses, but had opted for a humanist ceremony – inspired by the lakeside wedding of John and Phoebe Hitchcox – as the perfect way to exchange their vows before family and friends. The couple exchanged rings – hers a platinum band with tiny diamonds encrusted across the top; his a more chunky version in gold – designed by close friend Theo Fennell, who also created the matching engagement ring.
Kelly Hoppen, Mariella Frostrup, June Sarpong, former Genesis guitarist Mike Rutherford and his wife Angie and former Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason and his wife Nettie were among the guests following the happy couple to a garden lawn. They were then invited in to dinner in a beautifully lit marquee, where tables were decorated with stylish crystal candelabras, dressed with arrangements of white dahlias, Avalanche roses and white sweet peas, interspersed with fresh flowering mint, all artfully created by celebrity florist Rob Van Helden. "Tania is one of my favourite people and I couldn’t be happier for her," said Elizabeth Hurley later. "Rod is a very special man and I'm so glad that they are married. Their wedding was beautiful and touching and it was such a pleasure to be a part of it. Tania looked beautiful and Rod looked like the happiest man on earth."
It was Rod's traits as a father that first impressed Tania when they met in 2006 at the Barbados home of a mutual friend, Hans Rausing, when both were still married and did not even contemplate the possibility of a future relationship. "I just saw him as a wonderful father and I thought how lovely he was with his boy Jamie," recalled Tania. Rod meanwhile, later said he immediately thought Tania was "the perfect woman". A chance meeting on the corner of Berkeley Square in London a year later, when both were separated from their respective partners – Tania was first married to sports agent Tim Moufarrige – marked the beginning of their relationship.
