After enduring illness and loss, a couple’s love has triumphed with a joyful wedding. Grantham couple Sarah Perry and Nick Wiles tied the knot in a beautiful ceremony at the Belton Woods Hotel on Saturday, August 17. The newlyweds overcame significant challenges, including cancer, to reach this milestone.
They met 20 days before Sarah’s cancer diagnosis in April 2022, and Nick supported her throughout treatment. Nick himself had sadly lost his previous wife of 32 years to Covid-19. Sarah popped the question to Nick during a charity fundraiser that she organised at Grantham Railway Club in May 2023.
“It’s been one hell of a rollercoaster,” Sarah reflected, “but I feel like this has cemented our relationship.” The couple’s special day was a true reflection of their love story, with heartwarming personal touches. One such moment was the live performance of their song, "Don't Give Up on Me" by Andy Grammer, which held deep meaning for the couple during Sarah’s cancer treatment.
The song was also the title track for the 2019 romance film Five Feet Apart which tells the story of two teenagers falling in love despite living with Cystic Fibrosis. “It’s about fighting for your life and not giving up,” Sarah explained. Nick wore navy blue trousers and a jacket, paired with a pink shirt and a blue tie.
Sarah described him as looking “amazing” in this attire. Sarah wore a white dress with a corset back, with the shoulders left exposed. She explained that the dress originally had sleeves, but they had to be removed due to one of the more unique details of Sarah’s wedding attire—the use of a fake bust.
As Sarah explained, this was necessary due to the impact of her previous breast surgery. “I’ve still got shape, but the amount of padding I had was unbelievable,” she said. Sarah found one story involving the fake bust hilarious.
She recounted: “Belton put on an extended red carpet, and we had guests on either side throwing confetti. “But as they’re doing it, you can hear me on video going, ‘Hang on a minute, I just need to jiggle up and down,’ and my friends say, ‘Why? What’s the matter?’” “All the confetti was stuck to the inside of me, and I couldn’t remove it!” As the newlyweds made their grand entrance, Sarah’s manager from Morrisons was the first to catch a glimpse of her. “His face said it all,” Sarah said, before recalling Nick and others reactions to her look and the day in general.
“There were no fake smiles—all the smiles are natural, and I was so happy,” she said. The surprises didn’t stop there, as adding to the excitement, Sarah had arranged for singing waiters to surprise their guests during the meal. “They just burst into song, and all my guests were like, ‘Hang on, he was just serving our meals,’” Sarah laughed.
Giant letters spelling out ‘Wiles’ were also carried in and set up by the hotel’s decorating team, keeping the surprise from the unsuspecting groom. “It took two members of staff to carry one letter at a time,” Sarah revealed. A Ferrero Rocher stand was also snuck in for the event, with Sarah having to collect it and sneak it in during the early hours of the morning.
Despite a few minor hiccups, like Nick briefly going “missing”, balloon delays, and Sarah arriving late, the day was a success with lasting memories. Nick explained he hadn’t disappeared at all but was trying to get dressed upstairs while everyone was looking for him, telling them: “I’m up here. I don’t want to know anybody.
I’m trying not to stress out.” He also shared a funny story about one of his friends offering him a “hip flask” of what turned out to be “the most awful whisky” he had ever tasted. Despite this, Nick thoroughly enjoyed the day, saying: “It was a lovely day.
I wish everybody else could have been there.” Sarah, given away by her daughter Sophia, 13, said her family sees Nick as a 'guardian angel.' Sarah and Nick were grateful for everyone’s support and thanked all who helped.
The newlyweds will enjoy a honeymoon in Cyprus..
