A historic Fife castle will continue to play host to weddings despite suggestions by the owners that “Bridezillas” had forced them into a rethink.
Balgonie Castle, which was the first venue to receive a civil licence in Fife, had threatened to stop doing weddings altogether after an apparent dispute with a bride-to-be over a meal payment escalated on social media.Owners have now stopped short of stopping weddings and say they will continue to provide a location for nuptials, but the castle has stressed it will no longer be providing meals for future meal package bookings after the recent furore.
Kelly Morris of Balgonie, who helps to co-ordinate weddings at the medieval castle, claimed a “hate campaign” had been waged against the venue in recent days, although a number of brides have taken to social media to describe the castle’s handling of the situation as “unprofessional”.
The uproar started after a bride-to-be queried being asked to pay for her meal three months before her wedding day on an wedding forum, without naming the venue.
However, Ms Morris replied to some of the comments and divulged terms of the bride’s wedding contract many people would consider to be private sparking an online backlash from many brides and brides-to-be who have now called for a boycott of the castle.
Thousands of people have now seen the Facebook exchanges which went viral yesterday, and it is understood police have also been notified about the nature of some of the comments posted.
One woman, who did not wish to be named, criticised Ms Morris for threatening legal action against a bride who had not even named the venue in her social media posts.
“We all feel so strongly that Kelly was in the wrong completely and it’s too easy to let something pass by without retribution,” she said.
“The last thing I want is another bride in that position.
“I can only hope that this never happens to another bride.
“The whole bridal community has come together to rebel against an injustice and I would never feel bad about that.”
A statement on Balgonie Castle’s website said: “We are sorry to learn of a recent campaign on social media targeting our business and disappointed that this has happened.
“We understand that planning a wedding is a stress full time and full of hopes and dreams.
“We invest time with each client and go through the information pack which is given and discussed with the couple.
“The terms and conditions are set out clearly along with our tariffs.
“In line with the wedding industry.
“We ask for payment in the form of a deposit to secure the venue and reserve the slot for that couple.
“We ask for the balance to paid in full before the big day to ensure there is no complications and to ensure that there is no surprises after the big day.
“The meal tariff does not include child prices as the tariff is highly competitive compared to other venues.”
The overwhelming online response to the situation resulted in a post on the Balgonie Castle Facebook page which suggested “Bridezillas” had prompted owners to contact their lawyers to discuss the possibility of stopping weddings at the 700-plus-year-old site, but that post has since been deleted.
However, Ms Morris has confirmed that the castle will not be taking any future meal bookings and would recommend outside caterers to any prospective guests, although it will honour all weddings with meals currently booked.
See Friday’s Courier for more on this story.