Congratulations to Clare Young of Portaferry who won the 2008 Bookourwedding Bride of the Year Competition.

Among Clare were five other girls from across Northern Ireland who battled it out to become Bride of the Year. The finalists were Ciara Mc Kenna of Drapertown, Chrissy Gibb of Antrim, Leanne Mc Laughlin from Claudy, Tammy Maguire from Crossmaglen and last but not least Geri Mc Cartney from Belfast. Clare and her fiancé Aidan were overwhelmed when Clare’s name was unveiled at the grand final which took place in the Ramada Hotel Belfast on Sunday 19th October 2008.

The lucky couple are delighted to have won a Dream Wedding valued at over £10,000 and are looking forward to their big day which will take place in 2010.

In Clare's words...

"I still cannot believe I won the competition, it hasn't really sunk in yet. It will be a great help towards making our day special and  I cant wait to start planning and getting in touch with all the people who kindly sponsored prizes. Aidan and I would like thank bookourwedding.com for giving us the opportunity."


On entering the competition Clare told Bookourwedding of Aidans proposal...

‘Aidan picked me up from work on Christmas Eve and we came home to my house. He had brought my Christmas presents in to me but I didn’t want to open them until Christmas morning, he said well open your card then and I did as I thought he had got me the Westlife tickets that I had been nagging him for. When I opened the card, it said to my Fiancé at Christmas, when I turned around he was on his knee and said the magic words’

Included in their prize was ...
A stunning bridal gown from the Mori Lee collection sponsored by Bridal Elegance of Derry
A £400 voucher towards the Bridesmaids dresses sponsored by Perfect Day in Lurgan
Grooms Party attire sponsored by Debonair, Magherafelt
Wedding Photography sponsored by The Studio Portglenone
Wedding Video sponsored by VideoView of Portadown
A £250 voucher for the wedding rings sponsored by Murray & Co Belfast
A £250 voucher for chair covers sponsored by Fairytales the Chair Cover Company Antrim.
Wedding Stationery to the value of £800 sponsored by Your Day Your Way, Lurgan
A £200 voucher for wedding flowers sponsored by Fiona Harvey Flowers, Hillsborough
Celtic Storm Irish Dancers will deliver a 30 min performance of breathtaking Irish Dancing
A Cascading Chocolate Fountain sponsored by Chocolate Falls NI
A luxurious stretch Wedding Limousine sponsored by Absolute Limo’s Newry
A wedding cake to the value of £350 sponsored by Sarah Jane’s Cakes Enniskillen
A Pamper Day for the bride to be and five of her friends at the Omni. This includes a Hydrating Facial (1 hour), a Regency Massage (1 hour), a Manicure & Pedicure, with lunch and refreshments, sponsored by the Ramada Hotel Belfast.

‘On behalf of Bookourwedding we would like to extend a big thank you to all of the above sponsors for their generous prizes as without them this competition would not have been possible’