DUNDEE MAN Gavin Guyan took up the familiar married man’s role in The Doghouse before he had even taken his wedding vows on Saturday.

Thankfully Gavin was only literally in The Doghouse as he and his blushing bride Lynn Campbell made history by spurning tradition and becoming the first couple to tie the knot with a civil wedding in a Dundee bar.

With the sunshine beating down and beer flowing, Gavin and Lynn were joined by around 60 guests on bleachers, bar stools and benches in the courtyard of their favourite Dundee pub, The Doghouse.

In recent years the Brown Street music venue has rocked to the sounds of The View, The Law and many others, but on Saturday the bridal march was the tune of choice, as Gavin and Lynn’s dream became a reality.

A beaming Gavin said, “To be honest with you it came about one night when we were sitting around The Doghouse having a few drinks and we said to Sarah (manager) that they should do wedding receptions.

“We looked at having the service at the usual sort of places, but eventually we just thought why don’t we have the whole thing at The Doghouse.

“It’s a place we like to come and all our friends like to come to, so it’s a great place for us to have a party for everyone.”

Gavin and Lynn, who both work at the Grey Lodge Settlement, decided to take advantage of the Marriage (Scotland) Act which allows couples to get married almost anywhere.

Doghouse manager Sarah Hill, who has been friends with Lynn since they were five-year-olds, said she was delighted to help her close friends stage the happy occasion.

She said, “I’ve been friends with Gavin for a long time, too, so it was really special to be a part of the day.

“Everyone’s delighted for them and we wish them every happiness together.”

Lynn added, “Sarah has just been fantastic, she’s helped us so much in getting ready and organised for today. We both want to thank her for all her help.”

With the first pints being pulled, the couple’s guests relaxed in the bar’s courtyard area, enjoying the sunshine before they prepared to party hard with a night of live music featuring some of Gavin and Lynn’s favourite bands, including Big Big Sound and Hanney.

It proved to be a real family affair with Gavin’s best man and little brother, Chris, taking on double duties, as besides his ceremonial duties he performed later in the evening with his band, Hellbound, while Lynn’s sister, Gill Brown, who is the singer/songwriter Arkanna, started the evening off with the newlyweds’ first song.

One special family member was missing from the big day, as Gavin’s mother recently passed away after a hard-fought battle with cancer.

As guests arrived in fancy dress for the reception, with the newlyweds transformed into Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers, Gavin said there would be a collection for Dundee’s Maggie’s Centre in memory of his mother.

Gavin added, “It has been unbelievable. We couldn’t have imagined it would turn out as great as it has.”

However, after weeks of preparation and a last few frantic minutes, Sarah said she wasn’t sure if The Doghouse would be making weddings a regular fixture amidst the array of live music.

She said, “We wanted to do it this time because we are all such good friends.

“I don’t know if we’d do another one. It was a very special occasion.”