Real Weddings: Nicola and Drew

Apr 29, 2026 | Real Weddings

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Welcome to our Real Wedding Blog!

We’ve spoken to our couples to find out their top tips, advice and favourite moments of their wedding at Kelham House in Nottinghamshire. If you’re getting married with us, or simply looking for some wedding day inspiration for your own wedding plans, read on to find out more.

Nicola and Drew

Wedding Date – 24th October 2025

‘A timeless October wedding day filled with personal touches and surprise singing waiters’

A timeless love story deserves a setting just as special, and this beautiful wedding at Kelham House delivered exactly that. With thoughtful personal touches, unforgettable entertainment, and a venue that felt like home from the very first visit, Nicola and Drew created a day filled with warmth, happiness, and so many meaningful moments. From a long-awaited engagement to the perfect October celebration, N&D chose our winter wedding package, perfect for those autumn and winter weddings. Their wedding truly was everything they had dreamed of and more. Read all about it…

What was your inspiration for your special day?

We wanted something timeless and personal. With that in mind we chose a colour we knew we would look back on in years to come and still love. Also, we wanted to incorporate lots of little touches personal to us, so we spent lots of time on the run up to the wedding creating our stationery/signs and all the little details. This really tied everything together and made the venue look even more beautiful than it already did!

What was the highlight of your wedding day?

There’s not a single bit we could choose, it genuinely was the most perfect day. From getting ready in the morning, to dancing the night away, all of it was a highlight for both of us. We had waited so long to have our day, after being engaged since 2016 and it was everything we could of wished for.

We paid special attention to the entertainment and it was worth investing in! For our wedding we had 2 different vocalists for the service and drinks reception and they both really set the tone for the day. Amber started the day with her perfect tones for the pre ceremony and during the ceremony her voice was incredible. David really got the party started during our drinks reception, he was amazing!

Our guests really loved the live illustrator that painted our guests. They also really loved that we had L&N games for the children (and adults) so they were entertained for the whole day.

Special mention to the whole team for taking care of Nicola’s grandparents – this is one thing neither of us will ever forget.

Why did you choose Kelham House?

Nicola used to drive past Kelham House on her way into Newark regularly and always thought it looked like the most ideal location with the tree lined driveway. When we decided to set a date, we only looked at Kelham House. As soon as we walked inside, we felt the warmth from the team and knew this was our venue. Every time we visited prior to the wedding, it felt more and more like it was a second home to us, it really was the perfect venue.

How did you decide which menu was right for your day?

We had the winter wedding package so the hard work of choosing a food menu was done for us as it was a set menu of a Winter Roast platter. The food on the day was sensational. It was plentiful, warm and delicious. Everyone since the wedding has complimented on the food throughout the day

What was the hardest part of your wedding planning?

We didn’t find wedding planning hard at all. It wasn’t stressful at any point – but this was down to Lauren and the rest of the team because every question was answered, every request was met with enthusiasm and no job was too big (or too small.) If anything, it was actually really fun planning a wedding, we wish we could do it again!

What were your favourite parts of the venue?

We loved that Kelham House felt like home, it was perfect for us. Along with that, we loved that it had enough rooms for our family to stay with us and we loved that if the weather was bad we didn’t have to go outside for anything, although we had perfect weather (even in October) so we got to enjoy the beautiful grounds too!

They made every effort to cater for all of our needs – children/elderly grandparents were all looked after and all welcomed with open arms – nothing was too much.

But most of all, our favourite part of Kelham House was the team. Every member of staff we encountered made us feel like royalty. They couldn’t do enough for us, on the run up to the wedding, during and after. On one of our wedding meetings, the team even had a mini football match with our children – that ended in disaster, but that’s a story for another day!