Casino brides tie the knot on Friday 13th in Cork

For some, tying the knot is a gamble but this happy couple reckon their relationship is a safe bet.

Thu, 19 Mar, 2015 - 00:00

Eoin English

So safe in fact, they chose Friday the 13th to say ‘I do’ in a casino, before rolling the dice and doubling their money.

Nora Dennehy and Katriona Hourihan, who shrugged off superstitions to become the first gay couple to say ‘I do’ in an Irish casino, said Friday the 13th was now the luckiest day of their lives.

The newlywed’s unique civil ceremony, held in the Macau Sporting Club in Cork on Valentine’s weekend last month, will be screened tonight as part of RTÉ’s Don’t Tell the Bride show.

Nora, 28, originally from Tralee, and Katriona, 25, from Cork, met during Cork Pride Week in 2011 and began dating.

The happy couple

After a whirlwind summer romance, Katriona said things got “pretty serious, pretty quickly”, and the couple decided to have a baby.

Katriona was five-months pregnant last year when Nora popped the question. While Katriona had dreams of a beach wedding abroad, Nora had other ideas.

She approached the producers of Don’t Tell The Bride, the reality TV show which whisks one of the partners away to plan the wedding in secret, and after a rigorous interview process, the couple were selected to star in the show.

They were separated for three weeks in January — Katriona was left minding their baby, Willow Belle — and it was up to Nora to organise the entire ceremony.

Nora, who has the number 13 tatooed on one of her legs, opted for a Las Vegas-inspired casino-themed wedding and approached the Macau Sporting Club.

Club director Finbarr Corkery said he had to pull out all the stops to register his venue’s Mint restaurant for civil ceremonies.

“We often hold private and corporate functions but a civil ceremony was new territory for us,” he said.

“It was really exciting and we were so delighted to play a part of Nora and Katriona’s special day.”

Nora said Katriona said their friends and family were initially shocked but they loved the surprise.

“I even rolled the dice on the roulette table ahead of the wedding betting €500 which I was thrilled to double,” she said.

“It meant that I could buy Katriona the Jimmy Choos she always dreamed of — it made up for the dress that I chose for her and she hated.”

Such was the success of this ceremony, the Macau Sporting Club has now decided to offer wedding packages, which includes a 50-50 chance to win back the cost of the ceremony on the roulette table.

Nora and Katriona, who are going on honeymoon with their daughter next week, plan to watch the show on RTE 2 at 9pm tonight on a big screen in their local, the Red Cove Inn in Mahon.