Edgbaston is fast becoming one of the main wedding destinations in Birmingham. The stadium hosted a truly magnificent wedding when Ravinder and Sharleen tied the knot in April in front of 500 guests in the Banqueting Suite. Here they share their story with us!
Sharleen, a Fashion Merchandiser, grew up in Birmingham. After graduating, she relocated to London and latterly spent some years living and working in the Netherlands. It was whilst she was living in Amsterdam that she started dating Rav. Sharleen still remembers the day as if it was yesterday – a blind date at a Tapas bar in Spring 2015 which clearly went well! Rav is an Accountant for a Global Publishing company, born to an Indian mother and English father.
Why you chose Edgbaston Stadium as your wedding venue?
Great natural light in the rooms which enabled us to keep our décor and theme simple and classy as we wanted to. Edgbaston provides plenty of space to play with and is very functional – we were able to have our civil ceremony in part of the main room and it was turned around in time for the main reception whilst guests were entertained in the 1882 Suite for the drinks reception.
Edgbaston provides plenty of space to play with and is very functional.
In addition to these, Edgbaston is ideal for 500 guests, is very accommodating and provides an on-site car parking which was vital for us. It was a bonus that we could have a firework display which our guests were very impressed with.
How many guests attended your wedding?
500
Testimonial about the day and how it all unfolded
The day kicked off around 2pm with our civil ceremony (approx. 300 guests) this lasted just under an hour where we then moved into the 1882 suite for canapes and drinks. Rav and I welcomed all our guests and didn’t leave the room. Mahirs did great with the brief that I gave of turning the room into Indian street food with these beautiful carts and munjeh (Indian style beds). It was great that the venue could fit these in the room.
Dinner and reception was then taken place in the main Banqueting Suite which is a fabulous space. We hired a rickshaw from Mahirs for our grand entrance. One of my fears was us having to walk into a room of 500 guests so I thought if we came in on a rickshaw with our entourage, it would shift the attention off us. It absolutely did not take the focus away but it went down really well and got the party started!
The dance floor was busy throughout the whole night. We had great comments about the entertainment – even DJ Manny said the dancefloor was so alive and that the party was in his top five best gigs yet!!! We also we had a string quartet for the civil ceremony, a sitar and tabla player for the canapé and drinks and dhol players leading our rickshaw out during the grand entrance. The fireworks at the end of the night were a lovely way to end the festivities.
Your experience with Edgbaston
Nav our wedding coordinator at Edgbaston went above and beyond to cater for our needs. Mahirs, our caterer, did a great job in also decorating the room. Warwickshire Cricket Club is a unique and iconic wedding venue in cental Birmingham.
Warwickshire Cricket Club is a unique and iconic wedding venue in cental Birmingham. The venue has a large space which is essentially a blank canvas that we were able to transform into our own vision.
The venue has a large space which is essentially a blank canvas that we were able to transform into our own vision. There is also a balcony with a great view of the pitch and Brum’s skyline which was the perfect place to watch the fireworks. We had a separate suite for the drinks reception with also had a lovely vista of the lush green turf which guests could enjoy whilst quaffing on some fizz and nibbling on a paneer pakora or two. There was ample car parking for the guests. The venue is great as we had pretty much carte blanche to use any supplier we wanted.
Any advice for couples currently planning their special day
I had so much fun planning the wedding and would do it all over again. Enjoy this moment as you are planning one of the most important days of your lives and it should be filled with fun and laughter. Compromise and remember even though it’s your important day it’s also important to your fiancé and both parents. On the day, try to relax and remember that if something goes wrong, most likely the guests will not know about. Try to spend as much time as you can with your partner as you want to treasure these moments together. You don’t want to look back and think you didn’t spend any time with them on the big day.
Describe Edgbaston in 3 words
Spacious, Classic and Accommodating
What was your favourite part / highlight of the wedding?
This is not an understatement but we enjoyed everything. Special highlights though would probably be officially tying the knot and walking out husband and wife, not forgetting the entrance on the rickshaw and obviously not forgetting the crazy dancing…so basically it was all great!
CONTACT US TODAY FOR MORE INFORMATION
If you would like more information on our Catered and Self-Catered Weddings, please call Navneet Mangat our Special Events Sales Coordinator on 0121 446 3632 or email navneetmangat@edgbaston.com. Your wedding is very personal to you and we’re here to help you every step of the way.
