PIZZA may not be everyone’s first choice for a wedding banquet, but for Paul Young and Julie Hansford it made for the most romantic reception they could imagine.

In the early days of their relationship 14 years ago the couple enjoyed a meal at Pizza Hut in Salisbury, and when they were choosing where to have their wedding reception it was top of their list.

The happy couple tied the knot at St Michael and All Angels Church in Coombe Bissett on Saturday before heading to the restaurant in Blue Boar Row with their 80 guests.

Mrs Young, 50, said: “It was really my idea. It actually only started as a joke when I said to Paul ‘one day we will get married in that church and have our reception at Pizza Hut in Salisbury’.

“Once we started thinking about it more, it seemed like a really good idea – something fun and original that we’d always remember.”

“Our families have been very happy to support our decision, as they know what this restaurant means to us,” she added.

The couple, who live in Blandford, met at a mutual friend’s engagement party in March 2000 and went to the Salisbury restaurant for the first time a few weeks later.

“Some of our very first dates and most memorable times together in those early years were spent at the Salisbury Pizza Hut restaurant,” said Mrs Young. “It was our favourite place to eat, and we still go there every few months.”

Mr Young, 49, proposed in 2004 and they announced their engagement at his 40th birthday party.

For their reception, the restaurant was decorated in their colour scheme, staff dressed up for the occasion and a pizza shaped wedding cake with a ‘pepperoni’ heart on top.

Mrs Young said: “Married life is fantastic – we’re still both buzzing.”

For their honeymoon,  the couple are heading off on a cruise to the Canary Islands.