Couple 'gutted' after Somerset wedding venue closes two months before they tie the knot
A couple planning to get married in Somerset this spring has been left feeling "gutted" after their wedding venue suddenly closed and cancelled bookings.
Nicole Boncquet and her fiancé Connor Creed were due to tie the knot on 20 April this year at Oakhouse Hotel in Axbridge.
The 31-year-old says she had put down a £500 deposit and tried contacting the venue but hadn’t received a response since last November.
In an email seen by ITV News, Nicole and Connor were told the Oakhouse Hotel is now "ceasing to trade".
Nicole said: "Me and my partner decided at the beginning of last year we wanted to get married.
"When we were picking venues we decided the Oakhouse was a good choice as it held some sentimental value to us.
"At the start of our relationship five years ago, it was the first place that my partner and I stayed for a little break.
"It was where he told me he loved me so as soon as he said returning there to get married, we were dead-set straight away."
"A wedding dress but no wedding"
Nicole attempted to pay for the cost of the wedding in October and says she was given reassurance she’d be able to do so.
She says the last communication she had was on 30 November and messaged the wedding coordinator two months later - again, without response.
On January 27, she sent another message while her partner rang the company but was also unsuccessful.
She said she was “very distressed” but her email enquiring about her deposit had been passed on to the accounts team.
"Towards the end of January we have been getting very distressed", she added.
"I’ve been thinking ‘I’ve got a wedding in April, what the hell are we going to do?'
"I broke down in tears because I’d envisioned everything - the aisle they’d set up, how I’d look walking down it, the music, the photographers, the florists.
"I was due to collect my wedding dress on February 3 but I thought I’ve got to pick up a wedding dress but I’ve got no wedding.
"We’d had no correspondence about anything or how the day was going to run.
"We’re now thinking how are going to move on? We have people flying from Scotland, we’re looking to keep the same day but sort out other plans to make sure our guests don’t incur more costs.
"I’m absolutely gutted because my first - and hopefully only - experience of planning a wedding has been soured.
"Being ignored is just the worst thing because we haven’t a clue what’s going on."
An email seen by ITV News sent to Nicole and Connor reads: "It is with the upmost [sic] regret that I write to advise of the Oakhouse Hotel, ceasing to trade.
"I understand that you will have frustrations, however we have been unable to formally conclude or communicate the liquidation of the company until now.
"I apologise that we will be unable to fulfil our obligations to your wedding booking and I appreciate this is upsetting.
"Unfortunately, many external factors have led to the impossible economic climate that we find ourselves in.
"As such we are unable to continue funding the Oakhouse Hotel."
ITV News has approached the Oakhouse Hotel for a comment.