Wedding fayre to take over Shrewsbury Prison

A wedding fayre with a difference is coming to one Shropshire town next year when it takes over a former prison.

The Big Shrewsbury Wedding Fayre is set to transform the town's historic prison, which is now a visitor attraction, into one of the region's most unique wedding events, attracting 120 businesses.

More than 90 cells will be occupied by exhibitors from the wedding industry, showcasing their wares to would-be brides and grooms.

Also known as The Dana, Shrewsbury Prison will play host to the fayre from 11am to 3pm on Sunday May 9, 2027.

Organisers Shropshire Events Group and Shire Weddings & Events said the fayre had been designed to be much more than a conventional wedding exhibition.

Visitors will be able to explore the historic prison wings and discover photographers, florists, bridal specialists, entertainers and cake designers and many other businesses offering services for the big day.

Additional exhibition areas throughout the prison, together with outdoor spaces for suitable suppliers, food, drink, entertainment and activities, will add to the event.

Sean Goodman, managing director of Shrewsbury-based Shropshire Events Group, said: "Shropshire already has some fantastic wedding fayres so, if we were going to create another one, it had to be genuinely different.

"We didn't want rows and rows of tables in a function room. We wanted to create an experience that couples would be excited to attend and that businesses would be proud to exhibit at.

"The Dana gives us the opportunity to do something extraordinary. Couples will be walking through a real Victorian prison, exploring the wings and discovering a different wedding business behind cell doors along the way.

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"As someone who works in the wedding industry myself through (mobile disco business) The Party Guys, I understand both sides of these events.

"I know what suppliers want from a successful wedding fayre but I also spend every week talking to couples and hearing what they want from their wedding experience.

"Our ambition is to bring those two things together and create something Shropshire hasn't seen before."

Organisers are encouraging exhibitors to get creative in their use of the former prison cells to showcase their work.

Sean added: "That's one of the parts I'm most excited about. Imagine walking down a Victorian prison wing and every few steps there's another completely different wedding business waiting behind a cell door.

"One might be transformed by a florist, the next could showcase wedding photography, then bridalwear, entertainment, cakes or décor. We want couples to genuinely wonder what they're going to discover next."

He added: "There is an incredible wedding industry here in Shropshire, filled with talented independent businesses. We want to put those businesses in front of couples who are actively planning their weddings and create genuine opportunities for conversations, enquiries and bookings.

"This isn't simply about filling a building with exhibitors. We want to create an event that delivers something worthwhile for everyone involved."

Although 2027 will mark the first Big Shrewsbury Wedding Fayre at The Dana, Sean said the long-term aim was to make it an annual fixture in the industry's calendar.

"We're building this with the future in mind," he said.

"We want The Big Shrewsbury Wedding Fayre to become an event couples look forward to and businesses want to be associated with.

"The setting gives us an incredible starting point but ultimately it will be the businesses, experiences and people inside the prison that bring it to life."