THIS couple swapped bouquets for blood at their ghoulish Halloween wedding yesterday.

Pip and Paolo Torelli chose the scariest day of the year to say their vows at Oxford’s Register Office in Tidmarsh Lane.

In front of about 25 friends and family, the East Oxford couple pledged eternal love while dressed as a grieving widow and a hanged man.

Mrs Torelli, nee Daniels, said: “We’re silly people anyway. We don’t like taking things very seriously. I don’t like the traditional wedding primarily because you’re bringing the state or religion into your bedroom.

“We both liked the idea. I joked that we could go as a witch and wizard because it was Halloween, and it’s built up from there.”

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The radiographer, 27, said: “When we told the registrars that we were going to do it in fancy dress they thought we were joking.”

Mr Torelli, 36, added: “We wanted to have a wedding that wasn’t traditional. We wanted a fun wedding, and what’s better than everyone in costume?

“We also had themed music, cupcakes like brains and all sorts of other things.

“We wanted people to remember our wedding for being fun, not coming because they felt they had to. We didn’t want it to be boring.”

The couple, who have been together for 10 months after meeting through friends at a board game evening, got engaged earlier this month.

The ceremony was fast-tracked because Mr Torelli got a job as a computer games programmer in Canada.

He said: “We didn’t want to lose each other and the best way was to get married.”

Mrs Torelli added: “It was something we had previously talked about and we just decided to go for it.”

She said: “Originally we were going to have it really low-key with just us and two strangers off the street for witnesses. But then our families caught wind of it and wanted us to do it properly. But we didn’t really want to do it like that so we decided to make it a Halloween party.

“I’m aware of what they think, they believe it should be about making everybody happy and I have to keep reminding them it’s actually about us.”

Father-of-the-bride Anthony Daniels, 63, of Wimborne Minster, dressed as Count Dracula. He said: “Initially we weren’t sure, we were worried about what people would think, but it’s been brilliant.

“Everyone really got enthusiastic and it’s what Pip wants. We got a couple of strange looks coming into town but that doesn’t matter.”

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