Wedding Day disasters - and how to cope with them

You've planned everything perfectly, down to the last fleck of confetti.  The dress is altered to perfection, the bridesmaids all know their roles and are happy with them, the vicar has the correct readings and Uncle Fred has promised not to drink until the reception.  Everything is as it should be.  What could possibly go wrong?  As Jessie Wallace found out to her cost this weekend, sometimes you need to be prepared for the unexpected.

Admittedly, discovering that your fiance has has been sending provocative photos of yourself to another woman probably points to fundamental flaws within the relationship rather than anything purtaining to the wedding itself, but Wallace's decision to call off the nuptials just hours before they were due to go ahead had serious repercussions for everyone involved.  Guests already en route to the wedding arrived at the venue in Richmond, south west London, were in for a bit of surprise.  Caterers had to remove thousands of pounds worth of champagne and other goodies and florists had to take down all the decorations.  At least most of them would have been on site and it would have been easy enough for the suppliers to remove their goods again.

It's a different story when you're looking forward to the wedding going ahead and then one of your suppliers lets you down.  Coronation Street star Tupele Dorgu was disappointed when her bridal bouquet turned up on her big day in 2009 and it was not what she wanted.  Instead of getting upset, she simply carried her favourite evening bag down the aisle instead.

Holby City actress Tina Hobley had similar problems on her 2007 wedding day.  She had ordered a teardrop shaped bouquet but when it arrived, it simply didn't match with her wedding look.  Thankfully, ace florist Jamie Aston was able to create her a stunning handtied bouquet so that she didn't go down the aisle empty-handed.

Other things likely to go wrong on the big day include dresses not fitting/seams or hems going, people getting lost or unknown food/drink allergies presenting themselves at the last minute.  The best thing to do is to have someone on hand who is calm, organised and preferably distanced from the wedding party itself so that there is no chance of them being caught up in the frantic energy of the wedding day.  Make their mobile number known to people ahead of time.  Be guided by the professionals - caterers will know best how to deal with food allergies.  Keep important telephone numbers (e.g. the number for the nearest dry cleaner/mender) to hand.

In beautiful, barmy Britain the one thing we know we can never ever rely upon in the weather.  In 2007, during the summer of flooding that washed out large parts of the Cotswolds, South Yorkshire and the West Country, many couples had to deal with terrential downpurs on their big days.  Marquees in muddy fields became the order of the day.  But instead of crying in despair, we Brits did what we do best: we put the kettle on and worked out how to get round it.