Beyond The Ceremony: Modern Celebrancy. Unfiltered.

About Beyond The Ceremony: Modern Celebrancy. Unfiltered.

Everything you need to know about to succeed as a modern celebrant. From top tips on how to create unforgettable ceremonies, to success stories from some of the best in the biz, we will give you a behind the scenes look in to life as a celebrant. Hosted by Laura Crockett, Award-winning Celebrant, radio personality and celebrant mentor at the Academy of Modern Celebrancy.

Publisher

Academy of Modern Celebrancy

Category

business · business · education

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

2 Jan 2025

Latest episode

7 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

28 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   7 Oct 2026

   Beyond The Ceremony Podcast Episode 27: Wedding Law Reform and the Future of Weddings with Zoe Burke of Bridebook

   Wedding law reform in the UK is one of the most talked-about topics in the wedding industry right now, and for good reason. You choose who photographs your wedding. You choose who makes your dress, who cooks your food, who plays the music. But in England and Wales, you still cannot choose who legally marries you. That, according to one of the most influential voices in the UK wedding industry, is about to change. Zoe Burke is head of content, brand, and social at Bridebook, the UK's most popular wedding planning app with over 2.8 million couples served. She has 15 years of experience across some of the biggest names in the wedding industry, including Hitched, Confetti, and the National Wedding Shows. She met with the then Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy to discuss wedding law reform directly, and she wrote Bridebook's official consultation response. If anyone has a clear-eyed, authoritative read on where the industry is heading, it is Zoe. In this episode, host Laura Crockett sits down with Zoe for one of the most practical and reassuring conversations about wedding law reform you will find anywhere. They cover what is actually happening, when it might happen, how to talk about it with couples and venues, and why Zoe is convinced this change will be good for everyone in the industry, celebrants included. "You choose who does your photos, you choose who makes your dress, you choose who makes your food. You don't choose who actually marries you. That blows my mind." Zoe Burke, Ep 27 In this episode, you'll learn: ✨ What wedding law reform actually means for independent celebrants in England and Wales, straight from someone who has been in the room with government to talk about it ✨ Why Zoe is very optimistic it will happen within the next couple of years, what David Lammy said on camera about the timeline, and the one thing that could delay it ✨ Why Zoe does not think law reform will fundamentally change where people get married, and why venue owners concerned about losing business can relax ✨ What Zoe believes will happen with regulatory requirements for celebrants once the law changes, and why she thinks proper regulation is a very good thing for the profession ✨ The honest answer to the question every celebrant is being asked right now: what should couples planning 2028 weddings do? Business as usual, and here is why ✨ Why celebrants who choose not to pursue legal accreditation will still have a thriving market, including destination weddings, vow renewals, and couples who simply want the legal bit done separately ✨ How couples' attitudes toward the ceremony itself have shifted dramatically in the 15 years Zoe has been in the industry, and why the ceremony is no longer something people just want to get out of the way ✨ Zoe's one piece of advice for newly trained celebrants starting out, the thing she tells everyone across the industry who is just beginning This episode is perfect for: Qualified celebrants who are navigating conversations about law reform with couples and venues and want to feel more confident and informed Newly trained celebrants who want a grounded, industry perspective on what the next few years look like and how to position themselves Aspiring celebrants who want to understand the landscape they are training into and why this is actually a brilliant time to be joining the profession Anyone in the wedding industry who wants a clear, calm, authoritative read on what law reform does and does not mean for business This episode sits beautifully alongside Episode 23, where Laura Crockett, Professor Russell Sandberg, and Sophie Easton from the Give Couples Choice Movement walked through the government consultation chapter by chapter. If you have not listened to that one yet, it is the perfect companion to this conversation. After this episode, you will feel more confident, more informed, and considerably less anxious about what wedd

2. 

   23 Sept 2026

   Beyond The Ceremony Podcast Episode 26: The Science of Ceremony, and How to Turn It Into a Career with Char Srahan

   Here is a question worth sitting with. If religion is declining, why do we still need ceremony? Why do we still gather, still mark the moments, still need someone to stand at the front of the room and hold space for us? Char Srahan wrote her university dissertation on exactly that. And the answer, backed by anthropologists, neuroscientists, and sociologists, is that ceremony is not a religious invention at all. It is a fundamental human need. It predates organised religion entirely. And in an increasingly secular world, that makes what celebrants do not less relevant, but more important than ever. In this episode, host Laura Crockett is joined by Char Srahan, a newly qualified AMC graduate who trained in weddings and namings and is currently working her way through funeral training. Char brings a genuinely rare perspective to this conversation, part newly minted celebrant, part academic who has spent years thinking deeply about why humans need ceremony in the first place. Fresh off the course and full of energy, she is also one of the most honest voices on what the early days of building a celebrant career actually look like. "It's the raw humanness of it. Getting the honor and the privilege of being there at such a pivotal moment to celebrate, to remember, is actually just the most mind-blowing thing." Char Srahan, Ep 26 💡 In this episode, you'll learn: 💎 The four reasons humans need ceremony, drawn from Char's theology dissertation and backed by anthropologists, neuroscientists, and psychologists, and why understanding this makes you a better celebrant 💎 Why only 20% of weddings and 17% of funerals are now religious in the UK, what that means for the future of celebrancy, and why Char believes the industry is going absolutely nowhere 💎 What "collective effervescence" actually means and why it perfectly describes what happens in a room when a ceremony is done right: the moment everyone stops watching and starts feeling it together 💎 How celebrants give people permission to feel, and why that distinction between a ceremony people observe and a ceremony people experience is one of the most important things you will ever understand about this work 💎 The honest reality of life just after qualifying: the limbo phase of building a website, joining directories, establishing a brand, and learning to be patient while the bookings come 💎 What surprised Char most about the AMC course, and why the academic depth of the training caught her completely off guard in the best possible way 💎 How Char is navigating the transition from her day job to full-time celebrancy, and the mindset shift around realising that not every couple or family is your couple or family 💎 The one piece of advice Char gives to anyone sitting on the fence about training, and why she says even if you never practised, you should still do it ✨ This episode is perfect for: Anyone curious about celebrancy who has never quite understood why ceremony matters or what a celebrant actually adds, Char explains it more clearly than most people ever do Aspiring celebrants who are still weighing up whether to take the leap, Char finished training just before recording this and brings that pre-leap energy with her Academy of Modern Celebrancy students who are in the middle of their training right now and want to hear from someone who has just come out the other side Qualified celebrants who want to reconnect with the deeper reason this work matters, because sometimes you need to hear the science to remember the soul of it For more on the business-building side of life after qualifying, Episode 20 is worth going back to, where Laura Crockett shares her own journey and talks about what it really takes to grow a celebrant career over time. After this episode, you will understand not just why people hire celebrants, but why humans have always needed ceremony, and why that need is only growing. That is a powerful t

3. 

   1 Sept 2026

   Beyond The Ceremony Podcast Episode 25: Nature-Based Celebrancy in Scotland with Amanda Luscombe-Smith

   If you have ever pictured what a celebrant's office might look like, chances are it was not a hillside in the Scottish Highlands with a loch in the distance and a dog at your heels. But for Amanda Luscombe-Smith, The Great Glen Celebrant, that is not a fantasy. That is a Tuesday. A former drama student and theatre educator who spent 20 years at Eden Court Theatre in the Highlands, Amanda came to celebrancy through one of the most human experiences there is, writing and delivering her father's eulogy. In this episode, host Laura Crockett sits down with Amanda to talk about how that moment changed everything, what it really means to build a nature-based celebrancy business in Scotland, and why being completely yourself is the most powerful thing you can do for your career. Whether you are dreaming of ceremonies on a lochside, wondering 💭 if your existing skills could transfer into celebrancy, or exploring what training looks like in Scotland specifically, this one is for you. "Be true to who you are. The people that really want to be with you, that want to choose you, will find you." Amanda Luscombe-Smith 💡 In this episode, you'll learn: 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿How Amanda went from 20 years teaching drama at Eden Court Theatre in the Highlands to standing in the sea conducting a wedding ceremony 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Why writing and delivering her father's eulogy was the moment everything clicked, and how that experience now shapes the way Amanda approaches every funeral she leads 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 The real behind-the-scenes work of celebrancy that surprises almost every new celebrant, including voice notes, questionnaires, and why the foundation skills from training matter more than you think once you are out in the real world 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 What nature-based celebrancy actually looks like in practice, including a beach wedding involving wrong tides, a rowing bride, hay bales, and a jellyfish sting, all in the same ceremony 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 How Amanda markets herself as an independent celebrant in Scotland where humanist celebrants can legally marry and she cannot, and why she sees that challenge as one of the things that made her better at her job 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 The M10 process and how couples handle the legal side of marriage when working with an independent celebrant in Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Why funerals in the Scottish Highlands are different to the rest of the UK, and the extraordinary freedom to hold ceremonies almost anywhere with permission This episode is perfect for: 💫 Anyone in Scotland considering celebrancy as a career; this episode covers the landscape honestly and without sugarcoating 💫 Aspiring celebrants anywhere who are still figuring out their niche; Amanda's journey is a masterclass in trusting your identity over chasing the work 💫 Qualified celebrants navigating a crowded market who want to understand how to stand out authentically 💫 Anyone drawn to outdoor, nature-based, or non-venue ceremonies who wants to see what building a business around that specialism actually looks like 💫 Anyone drawn to outdoor, nature-based, or non-venue ceremonies who wants to see what building a business around that specialism actually looks like For more on how celebrancy works across the UK and beyond, Episode 21 is a brilliant companion listen, where Laura Crockett speaks with Málaga-based celebrant Marcia Bravo about building a celebrant career in Spain 🇪🇸 after loss, another story of finding your place and trusting the journey. After this episode, you will understand that your niche is not something you manufacture. It is something you discover by doing the work, trusting who you are, and letting the right people find you. Thinking About Celebrancy in Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿? Scotland's celebrant industry is growing fast, and as Amanda explains in this episode, being an independent celebrant there is genuinely different to the rest of the UK. The legal landscape for wedding celebrants has its own distinct pathways, and

Who has been a guest on Beyond The Ceremony: Modern Celebrancy. Unfiltered.

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Niki Smith
• Professor Russell Sandberg
• Connie Keogh
• Shawn Miller
• Nia

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

22,516

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Spotify

5.0 / 5

9 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 62 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

80

Social presence

0

YouTube

76

Engagement

32

Contact Beyond The Ceremony: Modern Celebrancy. Unfiltered.

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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