On the morning of the big day we all met at Rosanis' place, and the groom's group went from there to the hotel where we were getting ready. The photos at left were taken in the car park at the hotel. Brian showing off his cuff-links - a family tradition for the men to wear these at their wedding, Brian with his parents, Brian and the best man (me!), Sheilagh, Isaac, Ana, Brian and Stefan, Amy, Ana and Dominie (hope those are spelt right) later in the evening. 

We went on to the Hotel de Ville, and didn't have long to wait before the bridal party arrived, and we were being ushered inside. The ceremony (the first marriage of the year in Le Cannet des Maures) was conducted by the mayor, with an assistant. Brian and Daphna sat opposite with their witnesses (Stefan, Clare, and Jo) and best man. Amy, a French girl who is a friend of Daphna and Brian, and is a fluent English speaker as well, translated for those of us who couldn't follow the mayor. Brian also got plenty of advice on when to say 'non' and when to say 'oui' from the congregation, but wasn't leaving anything to chance for the "Big Question" - answering "Yes, oui, si, definitely" which made things pretty clear for everyone present, regardless of nationality. 

The whole ceremony was over very quickly, and, in keeping with the rest of the day, was relaxed, informal, fun, and just exactly as it should have been. 

We moved into an adjacent hall for champagne and nibbles, a chance for us all to congratulate the new couple, and for me to set up a practical joke for later in the evening. At about 7:30 we moved on to the hotel for the wediing dinner - wow. I thought Brian was exaggerating when he said 8 courses, but 8 there were, all meticulously prepared and all delicious. I forgot to keep a copy of the menu, so can't give exact details, but will just say that it's a meal I will never forget. We didn't finish eating until about 1 am, wine flowed freely the whole night, and the band played whenever people were inclined to dance (strange to hear popular songs I knew performed with French lyrics). There were too many highlights from the evening to list them all, but one that will stay with me, was Brian singing a song he'd written for Daphna - even though he had no guitar, and no other accompaniment, it was incredible. 

The next panel has a selection of photos from inside the town hall, outside, and later at the reception. The final four are from the old village of Le Cannet. I've also reproduced the speech I gave.

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Apologies for any mistakes in the French, Julian had written it all out perfectly for me, but it has probably deteriorated during my subsequent copying and editing.

Mademoiselles, Mesdames, et Messieurs. Je desirai vous remercier d'être present pour la célébration du marriage de Daphna et Brian. 

Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, I would like to thank you all for being here today to help celebrate the marriage of Brian and Daphna. I would also like to make a particular thank you to Brian himself for inviting me to speak today, and to a largely French audience no less. As a person whose last French lesson was nearly 10 years ago, I'm sure you'll all appreciate my warmth of feeling on that subject. 

Time to get even. 

Je voudrais remercier particulièrement Brian, pour m'avoir invité et de me permettre ce discours au jourd'hui devant ce large public français. J'espère que vous appreciez le discours de quelqu'un qui n'a pas parlé français depuis 10 ans, et je suis sur que vous appreciez aussi la chaleur que je porte à cette évenement. Maintenant c'est l'heure de regler les comptes. 

My first aquaintance with Brian was as a classmate over 10 years ago. I wasn't sure what to make of him at first, but soon got to like him, and even to be a little bit in awe of him - he was a smart student, an athletic champion holding several school records, an excellent tennis player, and a talented musician and singer. 

Ma première rencontre avec Brian a été, il y a 12 ans a l'école. Au debut je ne savais pas ce que j'allais faire de lui, mais très vite je l'ai beaucoup apprecié et j'ai été conquis. Un etudiant brillant, un athlète confirmé qui a su collectionner les trophées, un excellent joueur de tennis et aussi un musicien et chanteur talentueus. 

My musical career began and ended with the rock band we briefly formed at school, and you should all be pleased to hear that the only recording ever made of "Shale Gale" has been lost. Brian went on however to sing and play in other groups, and to take a leading role as Prince Abcess in the high school production of "sheik, rattle and roll" - the show was popular, although the sight of brian stripping off his purple satin jumpsuit on stage has been blamed for the sharp increase in alcohol and sedative abuse at the school since the show. 

His career as a movie star has not been as successful, and I am pleased to report that the video of "The Tryton Crystal", in which Brian appeared fully clothed, has also been lost. 

Brian went on to study at Waikato University, and after 5 years of studying Chinese history, and trying to teach chickens to drool at the ring of a bell, he graduated with a masters degree in Psychology. 

Brian a été diplomé en 1997 à l'universitaire de Waikato, où il a tout appris sur l'enseignement des gloussements aux poulets en etudiant meticuleusement la psychologie. Peu de temps apris il est allé a Londres où il a rencontré Daphna à son travail. Ce fait un très grand plaisir pour moi de rencontrer et de connaître Daphna, et je suis sur qu'ils auront un marriage fantastique. 

To outward appearances then, Brian is well accomplished in every aspect of his life, and it was only while I was writing this speech that I began to wonder if he could really be such an amazing guy, and if he is, why did his parents only have the one child - could there be some horrible secret reason that they didn't want to risk another one? And then I remembered a very suggestive occurrence - Brian had gone on holiday to Australia, and had scarcely left the country when his parents put the house on the market, packed up all the furniture, and shifted to another town. Brian returned home a few weeks later to find his parents had gone. I thought about this a lot, and what it could mean, but on reflection I can only suggest that his parents didn't want more children because they could see they'd got the perfect result first time. 

Shortly after finishing his studies, Brian was off again, to London this time, where he met Daphna at his work. It was an absolute pleasure for me to meet Daphna when I visited them about a year later, and to get to know her during other visits. I'm absolutely sure they're going to have a fantastic marriage. 

Maintenant, Daphna m'a demandé un petit service. 

However, Daphna has asked me to do one small service for her now. 

Pour les quelque fois, où ils ont été obliges de travailler à des enroits different et aussi des horaires differents, 

For some time they have been working at different places, with very different hours of work, 

Cequi veut dire que pendent les journées la seule Daphna a bien été obligée de trouver d'autres loisir, 

This has meant that Daphna has often been at home by herself, and has been forced to find other entertainment. 

Et comme vous savez, Brian et Daphna vont bientôt quitter leur appartement à Londres, donc puis je demandes à tout ceux qui ont les clés de l'appartement de Daphna de les retourner de suite. 

As you know, Brian and Daphna will soon be leaving their flat, so could I please ask for everyone who has spare keys for Daphnas flat to return them now [at which point three guys come up from the audience - the French guy I'd primed couldn't understand what I was talking about - doh!]. 

Pour concluse, je vous remercie Brian, Daphna, vos parents, vos amis et tous les gens ici d'être presents et j'invite tous à vous joindre à ce moment de joie qu'est le marriage de Brian et de Daphna. 

Daphna and Brian.