my big fat gypsy wedding

paulies_nixie

My Grandad on my Mums side was a Gypsy.
He met my Nana who was a country lass got married and was "excomunicated" dont know anything about that part of the family execpt that They'd have nothing to do with him cos he fell in love with my Nan. All a bit Romeo and Juliette... very romantic. He gave it all up for love.

I'm a bit strong willed and indepentant for a girl and them frocks would never suit me so mebbe it was a good thing. :beer:

Dr_DiNg_DoNg

francinefishpaw wrote: »

I was gripped, what a brilliant insight into the travelling community! Fascinating.

I can totally understand why the girls dress as they do in order to meet their mate. Their so much pressure for them to marry young and it what are their hopes and dreams are pinned to. It's not like they meet lads at school, at an under 16 night or at the youth club; they have the park they live on, the weddings they attend each year and traveller events they visit to impress. They have to make an impression (a bit like peacocks.) What better way to make an impression that wear provocative outfits.

:D:D:D

Its like a anthropological study "The mating ritual of the gypsy female"

Lobell

I am lucky to have met many, many Travellers (specifically Irish Travellers - I've met a few gypsies but my experience with them is very limited) and have attended a couple of weddings.

The girls do dress very provocatively (by our standards) but so do a lot of the married women so it's not done just to attract a husband. It's just a part ofthe culture - that's how their men like them so that's how they dress. I'm glad the programme emphasised that the girls, in the main, adhere to a strict moral code and aren't the slappers many would label them as on appearance alone.

It is tradition for girls to marry young but not all do. From my own observations, the girls that haven't had much oppotunity to pursue education are the ones most likely to marry at 16/17. From their perspective, life begins with marriage because only then are will they be able to go travelling with their husband, start their own family and begin to lead a life for themselves - otherwise life pretty much consists of helping Mum to look after the home and younger children...as portrayed in the programme, they generally do not go out and socialise outside of the family so life is fairly limited for them before marriage.

It's really encouraging to see some comments here their attitude towards Travellers has been changed a bit by the programme. It's a fascinating culture that the general population gets to see so little of as only the bad stuff gets publicity. I can honestly say that in the four years that I had daily contact with Travellers, I met far more good than bad.

luv_or_h8_me

The girl who wore the tight fitting dress.... that dress was just gorgeous!

Eyeballs_2

My opinion has not changed much about gypsies, we have gypsies who park up down the road from us once a year and cause no end of problem. They trash the place leaving rubbish all over. Then suddenly during this period a whole number of people’s processions start disappearing, I caught one gypsies girl trying to nick my pedigree dog out of my garden, she nearly got there too.

It's not all of them but I wouldn’t trust one as far as I could throw them, this is also the reason so many venues cancel on these people, they need to earn the trust back

They say they are all self employed too, yeah course they are, that way they don’t pay taxes. They also come round doing peoples drives and tree work and do a half arsed job and then leave, if you don’t pay them you get threaten and harassed

All I can say is that they have brought it on themselves and it will be hard to change that, lets hope they do

BLUis

does anyone know if the programme is being repeated? speakers are broke on the computer so i cant watch it on 4od
thanks!

floss2

Eyeballs wrote: »

...They say they are all self employed too, yeah course they are, that way they don’t pay taxes. They also come round doing peoples drives and tree work and do a half arsed job and then leave, if you don’t pay them you get threaten and harassed

TBH, that can happen with any cowboy builder / workman, not just gypsies. I too have experienced some who are like that, but have also experienced those who are a close-knit community with strong morals & faith, who bring their children up without many of the pitfalls of "country" teenagers i.e. drink, drugs, teenage pregnancy outside marriage or losing their self-respect. These people are not all the same as those you have experienced.

minnie123

I agree with Eyeballs I have had many experiences meeting these travellers through my fathers business and 90% of them are rude, intimidating and steal. I'm sorry if that offends anyone but that is my personal experience. Before I met any I used to have a go at people discriminating against them because I don't agree with discrimination - but then I met many different travellers many times andi'm afraid my view changed. In about 6 years I only met one traveller family that were lovely and polite. I also think it's ridiculous that they are above the law when it comes to paying tax.

I am having problems with them at the moment a group have moved into a field next to a close family members house who is desperate to sell up to move closer to family but the house has been devalued by approx 50k because of them being there - there is rubbish flying all over the place it looks a complete state - she is now stuck there until they move on.

C_Mababejive

I have often wondered how i too could be a traveller. I mean,i have a full time job and the housing market being what it is,whats to stop me just buying a caravan/motorhome and hitting the road? suddenly I'd save thousands of pounds a year and have the benefit of mobility and being able to go anywhere i wanted to on my days/weekends off.

I wonder if established traveller groups allow others to integrate?
I do have Irish roots after all..

Anyway..all that interbreeding and marrying cousins sounds like bad news.

Brigette looks fine to me...as does Joan !

Why should there be a big issue about wedding venues?

NikkiTony

gorgeouslatinrose wrote: »

LOVED the programme. Have read somewhere the dresses are in excess of £15,000!
Not quite sure if there the dresses I had in mind, but some extreme designs. Can't really work out why some of the venues were so snobby though, I understand sometimes there can be fights but couldnt it happen anywhere?

Your right it could happen at any wedding, families all getting together, just because they are travellers doesn't mean they will fight more than the Jones down the road! I felt sorry for her mum having to try and hide it to not upset her, then they can't tell anyone that's attending the venue until they arrive at the church to stop the venue's cancelling last min.

I watched it and thought it was really interesting, I think they're views are lovely about divorce, it encourages people to work at things maybe? rather than just chucking things away and getting a divorce.

I was a bit jealous that they can spend that much on a wedding though, I wish I could justify and afford it !!
Huge dresses! Not my type but totally out of this world.