YOUNG people today. They choose some odd places to get hitched. On the footplate of a loco at the railway museum; in the stands at York races; even on top of a crane before leaping into their married lives joined at the ankles by a bungee rope.

But bride-to-be Jenny Barker had an even more extraordinary idea. She was determined to get married at her local church.

It took a year of lobbying the Church of England, and the eventual permission of the Archbishop of Canterbury, to see her dream come true. That is because St Martin's Church in Whenby was redundant.

Not any more. This weekend it will resound to the happy sounds of its first wedding in 21 years. That will be a joyful occasion for bride, groom and the entire community.

Updated: 10:26 Thursday, June 07, 2001