The Mail's Bride of the Year competition came to a spectacular end with a £10,000 wedding for Richard and Chiara Griffiths.

CHRIS CORDNER was there to capture the atmosphere and LOUISE HUTCHINSON took the pictures.

"THIS is your moment Richard", said the wedding registrar.

And as Richard Griffiths turned, his beautiful wife Chiara walked down the aisle in a flowing white sequined gown with the deepest red bouquet of flowers.

A party of nine bridesmaids, five page boys and an usher were there in matching colours. It was the time for the butterflies to end and the dream to become reality.

Tears flowed at a wedding which marked the climax of five months of wedding planning for a couple whose story touched the hearts of thousands of Mail readers. We told how 27-year-old Richard had already exceeded his life expectancy.

He faces a constant battle for life because of a blood disorder called Wiscott-Aldridge syndrome which could kill him because it leaves him so prone to cancer and pneumonia.

But on this day of days, nothing was going to stop him from enjoying every minute.

Chiara entered the medieval Baron's Hall of the Staincliffe Hotel to the sounds of the Celine Dion hit Because of You.

She was arm in arm with her proud father Dennis, 51.

As she drew alongside her husband-to-be, Richard whispered the words "you look gorgeous".

A 20-minute wedding ceremony was conducted by registrar Peter Spires - filled with exquisite little touches.

Such as the poem A Walled Garden which tells of an adoring couple who have their own secret garden where they can nurture their love.

Such as the AA Milne poem about Piglet and Winnie the Pooh telling of love and trust.

Such as the words from an American Indian wedding ceremony which includes the line "When evening falls, you will look up and the other will be there".

There were tiny moments throughout the day to make the occasion complete.

Richard won't forget being woken at 5am by his 20-month-old son Brandon jumping on his head and telling him to get up.

We called in at 10am. Best man Stephen McKenzie, 37, was there to keep his long-time friend Richard in good spirits.

I asked him if his speech was ready. Stephen joked: "I'm going to do it off the cuff."

"We'll wing it", joked Richard and the two buddies laughed the nervous laugh of a wedding morning.

On the kitchen wall was a calendar. The only entry for Friday, August 15, had been written by Richard. It read: "The best day of my life."

He told how complete strangers kept reminding him of his wedding. "They've read it in the Mail", he said. "Every time I go in a shop they say 'good luck'. I get reminded of my wedding by the people who sell me toilet roll!"

At 11am, less than a mile away, Chiara was at her parents' house. She was calmness personified as she applied the finishing touches to her make-up.

She relives how she rang Richard the night before to sing "I'm getting married in the morning" at him.

I asked mum Linda how she's doing. "I'm panicking", she said with the look of a mother wanting the best for her daughter.

Her dad Dennis tells me how he's been memorising his speech in places like the car wash.

Linda fears the tears will flow. "I'm going to need tissues", she says.
By 12pm, the wedding cars arrived.

An hour later, everyone is at the Staincliffe.

Brandon is stealing the show. The handsome blond-haired boy cuddles his dad. It's a perfect distraction for Richard in the nerve-tingling moments before he takes his vows.

Twenty minutes later, it is all over and the couple share a kiss as their guests applaud.

The nerves have passed – for now.

Then, it's on to the reception where table after table is decorated in balloons of white and the deepest red. A magnificent three-tier wedding cake – complete with little models of Brandon and the bridesmaids – sits in the corner.

Then it's time for the speeches.

Richard tells his audience he is "truly overwhelmed" at the occasion.
He pays tribute to his bride, telling her she is "the most beautiful person I have ever met".

Later that evening, an evening reception and disco follows. The event, organised by photographer Bob Usher and backed by the Mail, is now over.

But for Richard and Chiara, the memories will live on forever.