Del saw an advertisement “squirreled away in the corner of the Evertonian magazine” and that’s when it all began.
This year marks the 25th wedding anniversary of the first couple to be married at Goodison Park.
On June 19, 1999, Aly and Del Thornton of Maghull tied the knot in the stadium. A few months prior to the wedding, Blues supporter Del asked his then-fiance whether she would be open to a unique wedding location after seeing an advertisement “squirreled away in the corner of the Evertonian magazine.”
It didn’t take much convincing for Aly,57, who grew up as a Liverpool supporter before becoming a Blue, according to her spouse.
“I told Aly about it and she said, okay, let’s do it – as long as I can leave all the planning to you,” Del, 55, said in an interview with the ECHO. He continued: “It seemed a bit more interesting than doing it in a registry office, so I got in touch with the club about it.”
It wasn’t, however, the low-key gathering the couple had anticipated. Del stated: “We had a lot of media attention because we were the first couple to get married there. The ECHO visited us to take pictures, which were published in the newspaper. What a waste of a low-key wedding!”
Held at the Dixie Dean Platinum Suite, Del characterized the wedding ceremony as “absolutely amazing”. “Getting married is such a great day anyway, but it was really fantastic at Goodison,” he remarked. Actually, that was pretty bizarre. I have never been there without the backing of tens of thousands of other people.”
Del claims that both on the wedding day and in the months that followed, the club really made a big deal out of the happy couple. “We managed to get pitch side for photos, and the club did all the flowers and decorations for the wedding day,” he stated.
“Because we were the first couple to get married there, they gave us two home and away shirts signed by the squad and got them framed for us.”
The pair was given the shirts on the field by Everton icon Dave Hickson at a home game the next season, and they were also given a hospitality match at the stadium.
The couple is still going strong after 25 years together. When asked what makes a marriage last a lifetime, Dave told the ECHO that it comes down to letting each other be who they are and laughing together, which is what they do every day.
Of course, Del is still a die-hard Toffee. He began going to Everton games in 1977 and now takes his family to the team’s home games at Goodison. Del replied, “Seven of us sit together in a row at Goodison.”
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