First Dates couple from Yorkshire get married after tragic Motor Neurone Disease diagnosis
Mike Sumner, 38, fell in love with Zoe Welch, 31, after being matched with her on the show in March 2020.
They married in relative's garden, in Silsden, Bradford, – after Mike, who has Motor Neurone Disease was given just five years left to live.
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Hide AdThe pair - remembered for Zoe’s impressive downing of a pint - planned their wedding in just three months after Mike's health started to deteriorate.
The couple chose to have a small town hall ceremony at Sheffield Town Hall on August 30, 2022, followed by a wedding with their family on September 17, in a relative's back garden.
Mike entered in a DeLorean car, from his favourite film Back to the Future, and Zoe downed a pint of squash - recreating the stand-out moment from their first date.
Now happily married, the couple hope to cherish the time they have left together and have plans for a honeymoon in Italy next year.
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Hide AdMike, who was training to be a driving instructor before his diagnosis, originally from Grimsby, said: “It was surreal seeing Zoe walk down the aisle in her dress.
"She looked amazing and the I got emotional at the ceremony.
"It was fun turning up in the DeLorean car and seeing the guests' reactions."
Zoe, a people manager at a bank, from Sheffield, said: “We wanted to have a non-traditional wedding and had just 20 people in the garden.
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Hide Ad"I helped Mike get ready and then went off to get ready, so my outfit was a surprise to him when he saw me.”
The pair met on First Dates, and although they didn't have a romantic spark at first they hit it off as friends.
Mike said: "I travelled from Grimsby on the train and it felt like a journey into the unknown, I was nervous.
"I arrived first and was taken to speak to the barman, Merlin. He was fun, we chatted about the future, the 80s and electric cars and I explained why I can't drink strong beer as it doesn't agree with me.
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Hide Ad"I only spoke to Fred for a minute or two, he was very suave and smooth."
Zoe added: "They didn't want Mike and I to see each other before the date so they hid me round the corner outside.
"I hadn't brought a coat with me, so I was freezing cold, I kept thinking 'are we going in yet?'.
"There were little cameras dotted around everywhere but you soon forget they're there.
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Hide Ad"There wasn't an instant spark between us but I thought 'let's get to know each other and see where it goes'.
"I did notice his bright blue eyes."
Mike added: "I thought she was fun and really easy to talk to."
"I'm so glad we went on First Dates," Zoe said.
"We each thought we'd just go on it for fun, and the fact we found someone we got on with is amazing.
"We have no regrets."
After hitting it off on their date as friends, they stayed in touch and were both devastated when Mike got diagnosed with MND in November 2020.
“I was crushed,” Zoe said.
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Hide Ad“I really cared for Mike and knew I would support him through it all.”
The friends met up for the first time since their date in June 2021 and continued to go to concerts, dinner and drinks together.
The pair realised their romantic feelings for each other in September 2021 and Mike moved in with Zoe in Sheffield.
“From that day on, we became a couple, and vowed to live each day to its fullest - taking mini-breaks away, getting out in the sunshine and generally seizing the moment,” Zoe said.
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