Friday 23 September 2022 04:29 PM Plucky bride reveals why she went ahead with £12,000 wedding day despite being ... trends now
A jilted bride has explained why she decided to carry on with her wedding without her groom when he failed to turn up.
Kayley Stead, 27, who lives in Portmead, Swansea, Wales, discovered she wasn't going to marry her partner of almost four years Kallum Norton, 24, the morning of her do.
Despite the heartbreak, Kayley decided to go ahead with the big day, surrounded with her loved ones around her, on September 15 at Oxwich Bay Hotel in Gower, Swansea, Wales.
Kayley went ahead with her wedding entrance, meal, speeches, dances and even posed for professional photos without her groom.
Brave Kayley punched off the top tier of her wedding cake, and spent her first dance with the groomsmen, her brothers, and dad Brian, 71. She even entered the party singing along to Lizzo's 'Good as Hell' with her bridal party.
Now Kayley (pictured) says she is pleased she still had the party, so that all the money and effort put into planning the do didn't go to waste
Despite her heartbreak, Kayley (pictured) decided she would enjoy her big day, after splashing out £12,000 on the celebrations
Kayley was with her ex boyfriend Kallum for almost four years, with the groom-to-be proposing in August 2022
Now living alone, with her honeymoon cancelled, Kayley is pleased she still had the party - so money and effort didn't go to waste.
Her friends have rallied around her, barely leaving her side and setting up a GoFundMe page to try and recoup some costs.
Insurance clerk Kayley said: 'I saw the groom at around 4pm the day before the wedding and I haven't heard from him since.
'We've tried to reach out to him, but I've had no response from him, no reason why. I've had no explanation - not that I want one now, because it's too far along the line.
'It was an absolute shock, I had no indication he was going to do this but seeing my girls distraught as well made me want to turn the day around.
'I didn't want to remember the day as complete sadness.
'The whole day, we were saying it felt like an episode of Hollyoaks or EastEnders. It didn't feel like a real life situation.
'There were so many special moments, like my wedding entrance, the sparkler walk, the first dance and punching the wedding cake - so there was still happiness in the day.
Despite being heartbroken, Kayley decided to don her wedding gown (pictured) and enjoy the day with her friends and family, looking her best
According to Kayley (pictured) the bridal party woke up around 6am, and started getting ready. The groom had disappeared by this point, but the bridal party hid Kayley's phone to ensure he was actually gone before breaking the news to her
Even after discovering the groom had fled, Kayley reassured the bridal party that he would be back - and that he was likely just clearing his head before the big day
Friends: Kayley (pictured with her bridesmaids) said 'asked the girls, his family and the groomsmen to continue getting ready, because I honestly believed he was going to be there'
The plucky singleton continued with the wedding day, and enjoyed the formalities, including the after dinner speeches (pictured)
'I'd spent all this money, I'd been looking forward to the food, a dance with my dad, spending time with my family, so why not?'
Kayley and her ex, named by The Sun as Kallum Norton, started dating in December 2018 and got engaged when he proposed in August 2020.
The night before the wedding, Kayley stayed in an AirBnB celebrating with her bridesmaids while the groom and his groomsmen stayed in a caravan near the venue.
Kayley said: 'The groom and I had already agreed not to speak the night before the wedding anyway, so I didn't know what was happening on his end, I didn't have a clue. I was in complete bliss - unknown bliss.'
The groomsmen contacted the bridal party to tell them he'd left, she claims.
Kayley said: 'We woke up at quarter past six when the make-up artist arrived, had breakfast together and then started getting ready.
'One of the groomsmen contacted my best friend to say the groom was gone, and the bridal party hid my phone so they could decide what was the best way to tell me and I wouldn't find out from someone else.
'They wanted to make sure he was definitely gone before panicking me.
Celebrations: while the groom may not have been at the wedding, Kayley's friends and family were, and she made the most of their company to ensure the day wasn't all about misery and heartache
When Kayley discovered the groom really had gone, her videographer jokingly suggested that she go ahead with the wedding anyway. She said: 'I'd spent all this money, I'd been looking forward to the food, a dance with my dad, spending time with my family, so why not?'
Despite not having the day go entirely to plan, Kayley made changes throughout the planned wedding to turn a devastating day into a beautiful one
'I found my phone and saw I had a missed call from his mum. I called her back and she was crying and told me he had gone for a drive in the early hours of the morning, and he was gone.
'At that point, I wasn't nervous, I was still quite hopeful, as throughout our relationship, he had sometimes gone for a walk or a drive to clear his head when he was nervous.
'For a couple of hours, I was saying he was going to be there, and I was reassuring the girls. I honestly believed, hand on heart, that he was going to be there.
'I asked the girls, his family and the groomsmen to continue getting ready, because I honestly believed he was going to be there.'
At around 11am, Kayley had just sat to have her hair done with her make-up all finished when she spoke to the groom's dad on the phone.
She claims he told her that her partner would not be attending the wedding.
Kayley said: 'At that point, I was gone. I was sobbing.
According to the bride, although her fiance did a runner, all of the groomsmen stayed, as well as all of her friends, family and loved ones
Kayley says that despite the sadness of the day, she still wanted photos 'because all of the groomsmen and bridesmaids looked absolutely incredible'
'Once I told my parents, the hairdresser and the videographer, that's when I had to tell myself that it wasn't going to happen.
'As a joke, the videographer said: 'Why don't
