Legendary Plymouth comedian and pub landlord get married at Tinside Lido

Suzy won the Funny Women award in 2006

An award-winning comedian and her pub landlord husband made a splash when they got married at Tinside Lido – putting hospice care, and the special people the couple have loved and lost, at the heart of a unique ceremony.

Suzy Bennett, a stand-up comic who won the 2006 Funny Women award, wed publican Willy Shambrook at the Lido, although a planned outdoor ceremony had to be changed at the last minute due to bad weather.

But the wedding helped to raise money for St Luke’s, with Suzy saying the charity is close to the couple’s hearts having cared for loved ones.

The idea started when Suzy and her mum, Jean, were browsing a local wedding fair when they spotted the St Luke’s stand and ordered a big batch of Plymouth hospice’s beautiful forget-me-not remembrance pin badges.

Suzy said: “We both welled up when we saw them. They were exactly what we wanted for our wedding favours, and they inspired the whole blue and white wedding theme.

“St Luke’s is very close to our hearts. They have looked after several close family members recently with so much kindness, love and care. They have also been very supportive to us as a family since our losses. They are a really special team.”

Rather than having a hen night, Suzy completed walks for charity instead. With her friend, and fellow comedian, Jane Hill she took part in St Luke’s Midnight Walk in July.

Acknowledging her mum’s breast cancer treatment, she also participated in two Moonwalks – one in London and one in Iceland (in a pasty-themed bra) – for the Walk the Walk charity.

Suzy, 48, has “had a thing” about elephants since she was a baby, so she and Willy were delighted to have Forget-Me-Not Elmer as a centrepiece for their big day, kindly loaned by Trevor Worth at Portcullis Legals, Plymstock.

The beautifully painted sculpture was a star of Elmer’s Big Parade, a spectacular city-wide event that generated £320,000 for St Luke’s back in 2019.

Suzy is a regular swimmer at Tinside Lido, and Willy adores the sea views, but heavy showers forced them to rethink their outdoor poolside ceremony at the last minute.

The couple managed to take a dip and pose for some poignant photos by the pool overlooking Plymouth Sound, before celebrating their marriage, and also both their birthdays, with a party at Steel Brew at Royal William Yard.

A focal point for the day was the memorial board photo display of forget-me-not friends and family – all the special people the couple have loved and lost in recent years – along with a St Luke’s collecting can.

Suzy’s dad, and Jean’s husband, Jim Tozer, was cared for by St Luke’s at home before he died in October 2019.

She said: “Mum was a nurse, and we were both doing what we could with Dad, but she needed to be a wife, and she was able to step back and let St Luke’s be the nurses.”

Suzy added: “The night after my dad died, we had a bottle of gin and decided to do a fundraiser. It gave us a real boost every time someone donated, and we ended up getting over £3,000.”

When her auntie Betty McKiernan died at St Luke’s specialist unit three months later, Suzy and Jean added her name to the fund.
Suzy said: “We were very grateful that Dad and Betty died just before Covid happened. They were safe and comfortable, and we could be with them.”

Then, in October last year, Betty’s husband, Eddie McKiernan, spent his final days at St Luke’s.

“Eddie would only come into the hospice because he knew how kind everyone had been with Betty. He was so frightened at home because he kept falling.

“At St Luke’s he was in a nice comfy bed, and he didn’t have to worry about anything. He just let go.”

Master of ceremonies for the wedding was David Arnold, the mutual friend and fellow comedian who introduced Suzy to Willy, “now collectively known as Swilly”.

As landlord of The Mannamead on Mutley Plain, Willy was familiar with St Luke’s name, mostly because the route of the charity’s annual Men’s Day Out goes past the front door, but he soon got to find out much more after meeting Suzy.

Willy said: “I had never come into contact with hospice care before. Suzy introduced me to St Luke’s, and I have seen how much it means to her and Jean… the first class stuff they do.”

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