“I was so nervous before the ceremony because I was full of emotions and adrenaline,” recalls Iqbal. “As soon as I walked into the room and all my friends and family were sitting there with Nicholas standing at the end, I could feel the positive energy in the room. It made me very happy. Nicholas read aloud what he wrote as part of the vows Some very sweet words from , made me cry, even the clerk! The whole thing was very emotional, but in a joyful, loving way, when you know you’re standing on someone who loves you and wants to be with you You get a deep feeling when you’re around someone you’ve been with your whole life and you reciprocate them too. It’s a whole new feeling for me that I’ve never experienced before. It’s like opening a New love.”
After guests lined up to greet Daly and Iqbal with confetti walking through the entrance of the ICA, they moved to a private garden for a reception before returning inside to eat dinner. The menu is created by Iqbal’s longtime friends Missy Flynn and Gabriel Pryce, whose restaurant Rita’s is a favourite of London’s biggest names. “It was a great feeling to work with caterers who were also friends because we really got the feeling that Missy and Gabriel were going the extra mile to make the food and drink special and personal to us and everything was perfect,” Iqbal said.
Finally, given that Daly and Iqbal’s first encounter was on the dance floor, they will be hosting an epic show at the ICA’s theatre space It’s only fitting that an after-party ends the night gracefully — and with a killer musical lineup. First, Daniyal Ahmed played a traditional Pakistani flute bansuri, followed by Dhol Foundation drummers who accompanied Daley and Iqbal into the party. (They were also accompanied by the ceilidh band, and all the wedding guests were immersed in the atmosphere of Scottish dance.) “Because music is such a big part of both of us’ lives, it forms a very important element of the wedding celebration,” said Day. Lee explained. “For our first dance, we chose Al Green’s song ‘Let’s Stay Together’ and three of our musician friends played the most romantic song: James Maloney on Fender Rhodes piano, alto saxophone Shabaka Hutchings and Aldous RH vocals on . The party goes on until 3am thanks to our amazing DJs who keep the dance floor going: Zakia, Dennis Bovell, Al Wootton, Riz La Teef, Ahadadream, Nooriyah, Dar Diskku , Kassem Mosse and Louise Chen.”
Daly and Iqbal’s epic wedding may be over, but the memory of all their friends and family together is something they will cherish for the rest of their lives . “It was a complete whirlwind and the most epic event we had to organize, but we couldn’t have asked for better – everything went according to plan,” Iqbal said. “We were both exhausted afterwards and barely spoke the next day, but we still felt like we were recovering from it. We felt so blessed to have so many loving friends and family celebrating with us.”
