Couple left devastated after having wedding date tattooed on their arms – before big day postponed by coronavirus
A COUPLE have been left devastated after having their future wedding date tattooed on their arms - before the big day was postponed by coronavirus.
Francis Donald, 26, and Fionnuala Kearney, 24, had been planning the nuptials for October 16th 2020 after getting engaged three years ago.
But the couple said they were stunned when they realised the pandemic meant they had to postpone the ceremony - and that the wrong date was now commemorated on their skin forever.
Fionnuala, a social worker from Belfast, Ireland, said: "We were in Turkey and had checked out of our hotel at 9am, but had to wait until the evening for our flight home - so we decided to go on a bar crawl.
"We strolled past a tattoo salon and we were tipsy, so thought it was a great idea to get matching tattoos.
"It's funny because we were being extra careful to make sure we got the roman numerals correct, and the staff were teasing us, saying: 'Are you sure that's the right date?'
"Francis and I often make spur of the moment decisions - we're quite spontaneous - so we decided to go for it and get matching tattoos.
"When I was told we would have to postpone the wedding I was devastated of course - but we only realised afterwards about our tattoos.
"If you don't laugh, you'll cry!"
The couple had first met while studying at Ulster University in 2015 before getting engaged in 2017.
TAT-TRUE LOVE
Recounting the romantic proposal, Fionnuala said Francis had elaborately planned the day while they were on a romantic getaway in Inch Island, in County Donegal, Ireland for New Year 2017.
She said: "Francis knows how much I love Beauty and the Beast, and the lodge looked like something straight out of the film.
"We spent an amazing few days wandering around Inch Island, and on New Year's Eve we walked around and watched the fireworks.
"Little did I know, Francis had been making plans with the owners of the lodge - I walked through the door to find it transformed.
"It had been set up like a scene from Beauty and the Beast - complete with the rose in the glass case.
"Then, Francis asked me to marry him."
And while eager to tie the knot, the couple said they decided to wait to get hitched in October 2020 as Fionnuala was starting her master's degree in September 2018.
It's funny because we were being extra careful to make sure we got the roman numerals correct
Fionnuala Kearney
The excited bride even bought her dress in September 2018, with the couple then booking their band and sending out invites.
But as the deadly bug continued to spread across the UK, Fionnuala decided to contact the wedding venue to find out what was going to happen to their big day.
She said: "We were supposed to have our six month review before the wedding, to make sure that everything was going to plan.
"Of course, I had considered the virus and the effects it might have, but with our wedding being quite far away in October, I didn't think we would be affected."
They eventually settled on a new date of April 22 next year and are brain storming ideas of how to make the date marked in their tattoos memorable.
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Fionnuala said: "Somebody suggested that we do a skydive, other people have said we should lie and tell people the tattoos say the right date.
"I love the skydive idea.
"Whatever we do, we're going to make it memorable."
