About Me

Hi, I’m Ellie Farrell, an award winning alternative Wedding, Handfasting, Funeral and Life Events Celebrant and a Celebrant Trainer based in Whitby North Yorkshire. My husband Rob is a wedding photographer, and we love working together creating and capturing unique and specialised ceremonies for many couples and people.

Alternative Ceremonies UK was born as we were booking our own wedding and realised there wasn’t anything available for alternative or creative couples. We were faced with many restrictions and had to settle for a standard register office marriage like so many other couples.

I decided to train to become a Celebrant to offer bespoke ceremonies to all who seek them regardless of their requirements, venue choices, lifestyle choices and beliefs. Over the years this has given me the opportunity and the honour to have been involved with so many amazing ceremonies; all different, all memorable.

True Alternative Celebrant

I am possibly the original alternative celebrant. (Not an egotistical claim, an observation as when I started my business nearly 11 years ago, there wasn’t another celebrant offering the kinds of ceremonies I offer). I am a Goth Celebrant (this doesn’t mean I will turn up to your ceremony in a hearse with big hair, heavy goth make up, wearing short skirts, fishnets and chains (unless you want me to). My definition of an alternative celebrant is a celebrant who lives an alternative lifestyle and one who has a knowledge of alternative subcultures, lifestyles and beliefs.

It is an honour and a privilege to be asked to design, create and perform any ceremony for people and working with inspiring, quirky, creative, alternative, and likeminded people is rewarding. I didn’t become a celebrant for self-importance or likes on social media, I became a celebrant to enable real alternative people to have the types of ceremonies they want to have, ceremonies which non-alternative, non-Pagan, non-subculture celebrants aren’t offering. (Paganism and Goth are ways of life, not wedding themes).

Hugs come as standard

Am I The Right Celebrant FOR YOU?

Likeminded people with similar interests are drawn to each other as we ‘get it’ without explanation or judgment. We are drawn to people for many reasons, including having common interests. Below is some information about me.

Some of my favoured things are my family and many friends (my best friend is my husband Rob), Whitby, York Ghosts (I have over 300 of them), The Cure ( I love them), New Rocks, DM’s, Irregular Choices, corsets, tattoos ( I am covered), Mexican and Thai food,  Percy Pigs, Jack Daniels, gin, cocktails, burlesque,1980’s films, The Munsters, The Addams Family, American Horror, classic Hammer Horror, Marvel and DC, Norse Paganism and Wicca (I am a Priestess who creates Pagan ceremonies), all animals (I am owned by a Chorkie and 2 Devon Rex cats and 4 tarantulas who are scared of people and won’t be seen on Zoom meetings).

If after reading the information on my site you would like to discuss your ceremony, please get in touch with me for a no obligation chat.

My Motto in life is:

‘Be Excellent To Each Other’, Bill and Ted