THE hundreds of people who visited the Oxford Mail Wedding Fayre showed how popular marriage still is.

Three suites at the Four Pillars Hotel in Sandford-on-Thames were packed with exhibitions and displays showing everything a couple needed for the big day. Altogether there were 45 exhibitors dispensing advice and information.

Exhibition manager Joanna Fisher said: "This was the biggest fayre we have organised. I have been working on exhibitions for five years and their popularity grows all the time.

"They say that weddings are losing popularity, but there seems no evidence of it from the people who visit us. There is an enormous amount of interest."

From invitations, wedding gowns, menswear, rings, food, wedding cakes, drink, music and flowers to photography and videos, transport, honeymoon arrangements, it was all there for couples preparing for their big day.

Planning a September wedding were Tania Neset, 33, from Witney, and her fianc Mark Ramsey, 32, from Cardiff. They say they expect the whole wedding will cost them about £10,000.

Miss Neset said: "It's a lot of money but it will be our most important day and we want everything to be perfect. The fayre has been most valuable."

Michelle Wiltshire, 29, from Dirac Place, Didcot, and Mark Embling, 27, from Sutton Wick Lane, Drayton, near Abingdon, will get married on a beach in Cancun, Mexico, next January.

Michelle said: "We decided we wanted a wedding with a difference but it will still be glamorous. I will ride in a horse-drawn carriage and red carpet will be laid out."