Tony and Marjorie hugged us, then went back to work. We all burst out laughing, overwhelmed by relief that it was over. Paul, Tony and Marjorie signed the register as our witnesses, and a couple of minutes later we were outside the room. John and I leant forward, straining to hear the registrar and shouting our responses. But the registrar saw nothing funny in either the drilling or George’s joke, so we all struggled to keep our faces straight. There was another comic moment when the registrar asked the groom to step forward and George did so. Clearly the man wasn’t going to stop so we had no choice but to carry on. A workman in the backyard of the building opposite started up a pneumatic drill and we stared at each other in disbelief. As John and I stood in front of him, preparing for our vows, the whole thing took a ludicrously comical turn.
Moments later we were ushered into the register office, where the registrar, a dour, solemn man, was waiting for us. I know John would have loved someone to be there from his family, but Mimi had put paid to that. Tony was there to represent our family and he played the big brother to perfection, putting an arm around me protectively. My brother Tony and his wife Marjorie arrived next, hurrying in at the last minute because they’d had to come in their lunch hour.
#When did john lennon write power to the people crack
Someone made a crack about the boys’ suits, which broke the ice – we all started to giggle. When I came in John leapt to his feet to hug and kiss me and tell me I looked beautiful. I was touched by the effort they’d made, although their clothes would have been more in keeping with a funeral and so would their expressions: all three were horribly nervous. George and Paul had made a big effort to look the part and clearly felt it was their role to support John, who was sitting between them, white-faced. They were all alarmingly formal in black suits, white shirts and white ties – the only smart outfits they had. When we arrived, John, Paul and George were pacing about in the waiting room. I prayed it wouldn’t – at least until I’d got into the register office because I didn’t have an umbrella. It might have been August but the sky was overcast and grey, and it looked as though it would rain at any moment. He was kind to me on the journey, soothing my nerves and telling me I looked lovely. He looked so smart and the glamorous car made me feel special. I put my hair up in a French pleat, added black shoes, a black bag, a touch of pink lipstick, and I was ready.īrian arrived, dapper in a pin-striped suit, and escorted me to his chauffeur-driven car. I couldn’t afford a new outfit so I wore my best purple and black checked two-piece suit with a frilly high-necked white blouse that Astrid had given me. I’d have loved Phyl to be with me, but she was away on holiday. The wedding was booked for late in the morning at the Mount Pleasant register office and Brian, who proved himself a true friend and far more than just John’s manager, arranged to pick me up from my bedsit and drive me there.
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