Husband and wife brought closer by buffet row

Jun 13 2008 by Chris Robinson, The Journal

A BRIDE forced to walk down the aisle with a black eye last night opened her wedding album to The Journal. Bernadette McGibbon wore sunglasses matching her white dress to hide the injury after being punched in the face during an argument over her buffet the night before the wedding.

Last night, Mrs McGibbon said the fracas and ensuing court case had actually brought her and her husband closer together.

Despite her injury, which has left her with a serious impairment to her vision, Mrs McGibbon, 50, still walked down the aisle, smiling to family and friends after needing 10 stitches to her face, at St John’s Methodist Church, Sunderland.

Now looking forward to a Caribbean honeymoon next year with husband Eric, 53, the newlyweds told The Journal that just a month before their first anniversary the events surrounding the evening before their big day have brought them “closer” as a couple.

Kevin Forster was yesterday cleared of any wrong doing after defending himself against the pair when a row erupted over their catering, provided by Mr Forster’s girlfriend Joyce Miller.

But Mrs McGibbon said that if it was not for their original reception venue falling through, they would never have asked Mrs Miller to do their catering, and would never have ended up in court.

She said: “We are disappointed with the outcome but that’s the way it goes.

“It didn’t spoil the day, I just got on with it and didn’t let it spoil the wedding.

“We had friends coming up from all over the country and everything was booked. It was a lovely day and I only wish I had met him years ago.”

Mrs McGibbon spent the morning of her wedding in hospital after her retina was ruptured when Mr Forster punched her while defending himself after coming under attack from the pair.

The couple described Mrs Miller, a caterer for 26 years and the widow of a friend, as their “knight in shining armour,” when she offered to provide catering for the big day.

Mrs Miller had always claimed in court that she had every intention of preparing the catering for the wedding and was to make food fresh in the morning.

She told the court that some items including plates and trays had been stored inside her larder at home, but it was never searched.

However Mrs McGibbon said Mrs Miller told her the money had been spent and there was to be no buffet, leading to the fight.

The couple said they wanted to thank police, their legal team and witness staff at Newcastle Crown Court.