It might be her mum who stole the show on screen, but the spotlight was firmly on country singer Darby Ward when she tied the knot in a romantic sunset ceremony in the South of France.
Darby, the 26-year-old daughter of former The Real Housewives of Cheshire queen bee Dawn Ward and ex-footballer Ashley, wed property developer and businessman Michael Corrado Jackson at the luxurious Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat, with the couple's adorable daughter, Skye – who turned one last week – making the most enchanting ring bearer and flower girl.
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"The day was a million times more wonderful than we ever could have imagined," the bride tells HELLO!, revealing that her glamorous interior designer mum Dawn, who is no stranger to helping organise big, glitzy events, had been "completely in her element".
The couple's daughter Skye was their flower girl. Photo: Chelsea White
As she waited to walk up the white rose petal-strewn aisle on Ashley’s arm, to Eva Cassidy's Songbird, performed exquisitely by singer and Tik Tok sensation Nicole Simpson, aka Red, Darby could feel her heart racing.
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Preceded by her seven bridesmaids, her nerves began to subside as she got closer to her groom, who admits he "completely lost it" when he saw his bride.
"I'd started to go a bit when I saw Skye, but I told myself: 'Contain yourself.' Then I saw Darby and I was just blown away and couldn't hold it in anymore," says Michael, 41.
The couple's wedding ceremony was filled with love. Photo: Chelsea White
When the time came for the speeches, Michael spoke from the heart about his love for his new wife Darby and their little girl and the happiness he'd found, while Ashley reminisced about precious father and daughter moments with his first-born over the years.
"It truly was the most perfect day filled with love, laughter, family, friends, romance, emotion. I didn't want it to end and to see my baby girl so happy and marrying a man who so clearly adores her, a mother could not ask for more," says Dawn.
Interviews: Belinda Robey
Photos: Chelsea White
Bridal Party Hair: Leanne Jacobs, Nicholas James
Tucker Bridal Party Make-Up: Caitlin Duff, Vanessa Thornton-Yates
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