Aberdeenshire & Moray Archives

Brian Baxter

July 6, 2014by Fuze Admin

Brian Baxter, Celebrant

“I take enormous joy in helping others to create their own unique ceremony and to assist them in having the most memorable day of their lives.”

Brian is available to conduct Weddings, Civil Partnerships, Vow Renewals, Baby Naming & Funeral Ceremonies.

Brian Baxter has witnessed and ably assisted with well over 1000+ Wedding Ceremonies across the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, particularly so when delivering his Highland Wedding Master of Ceremonies (Toastmaster/ MC) provision. Brian is a highly skilled public speaker and has a Robert Burns recital gift. He has an impressive Master of Ceremonies CV. Some clients have said that he is “the calm in the storm”.

He takes great joy in witnessing the freedom that a Humanist Ceremony gives to his clients, making the occasion even more memorable for the newlyweds, family and guests. He is passionate about creating and delivering dignified and meaningful funeral ceremonies too. In 2020 he decided to study for and gain the Diploma in Public Speaking and Humanist Ceremonies with UKCAPSA. After completing the diploma, he was "chuffed tae bits" when he was asked to become a Humanist Celebrant with the Fuze Foundation and Fuze Ceremonies. Delivering his first ever legal wedding ceremony in September 2020.

Brian married Val in 1989. They have one son. When not delivering weddings, vow renewals, baby naming and funeral services, Brian and Val like to take exotic Cruise Ship holidays, tae the sun!

Since age 16, Brian has had a staggering 40+ years military experience. At age 40, he took some time out from the military, ran a pub for a spell and worked in the Chamber of Commerce, Dundee, as a manager delivering learning & development to clients in a variety of age groups. He also had a 3-year period working for Local Government, as Team Leader of an Anti-Social Behaviour Team! It was back full time with the military again in 2010, and he retired fully from the army in July 2023. He says - "because it was time to use the "bus pass!"

These past working experiences and life skills gained have aided him in developing his consulting, listening, and toned communication skills, ensuring that he always listens to his clients & guides them in their aspiration to create a unique, special, unforgettable, dignified, touched with fun, a bit of witty banter and a truly personal ceremony.

Brian is by far, one of the smartest dressed male celebrants in Scotland. Owning more kilts and trews than a kilt shop, and more dress suits than any high street clothing outlet!

Brian will travel from his home in Scone to conduct your ceremony anywhere in Scotland. Please be aware though that this may involve additional fuel, accommodation and/ or travel costs in order to do so. Just ask.You can contact Brian on brianbaxter@fuzeceremonies.co.uk or you can see more of Brian on Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok

Yvonne Hannah

May 7, 2014by Fuze Admin

Yvonne Hannah, Celebrant

Yvonne is available to conduct Yvonne is available to conduct Weddings, Vow Renewal, Baby Naming & Funeral Ceremonies.

Yvonne just loves getting to know people, a bubbly, happy person who gets super excited about love and anything shiny. She adores writing personal and unique love stories, creating, and conducting a ceremony that will not only be remembered by you for years to come, but by your family and friends too.

As a Fuze bride herself, Yvonne has firsthand experience. From meeting with you both for the first time, throwing around ideas on symbolic gestures like handfasting, or drinking from the quaich, through to being there for you both on the day. She appreciates how exciting each stage is and knows how wonderful it is to hear your own personal story as you make your vows to one another.

The idea of becoming a Humanist Celebrant came as she traveled around the NC500 with her husband Allan and their 3-year-old Cocker Spaniel, Skye. As a couple, their joy of traveling around Scotland and its islands played an important part in their wedding ceremony. As they reminisced about how special their wedding day was, Yvonne decided that she was going to train to become a Marriage Officer herself.

Humanist ceremonies are about you, there are no limits on what shapes your ceremony or where you have it, and that is a beautiful thing. Get in touch with Yvonne to share your story and start to build your perfect ceremony.

Yvonne is based in Fife and covers Aberdeenshire & Moray, Argyll & Bute, Ayrshire, Dumfries & Galloway, Edinburgh & Lothian, East Renfrewshire & Renfrewshire, Glasgow City & East /West Dunbartonshire, North & South Lanarkshire, Perthshire, Fife & Angus, Scottish Borders and Stirlingshire

You can contact Yvonne on yvonnehannah@fuzeceremonies.co.uk or you can see more of Yvonne on Facebook , Instagram and Tik Tok

Chris Alexander

May 5, 2014by Fuze Admin

Chris Alexander, Celebrant

Chris is available to blether for and conduct Weddings, Civil Partnerships, Vow Renewals, Baby Naming & Funeral Ceremonies.

As an actor Chris has found himself travelling the world. A passion for folk and their stories and the connections, long or short that immeasurably inspire us all our days.

It’s crucial to Chris that your ceremony is your story. In joy or grief.

As a person it was a saunter on El Camino Santiago that ignited a want to aid people. “We share stories all the time. A simple hello could have a million possibilities.” As an outdoor lover, a pal to nature and Munro bagger, Chris is happy to do any ceremony, wherever you want. Mountains, beauty spots of Scotland(What a country) to jumping in the sea(After we’ve checked for sharks). Or the local hall! Nothing is off limits. Mother Nature is a wonderful sculptor.

It was a natural flow to combine the skills as an actor and place it in humanist ceremonies. I love working with people. Travelling is a passion. “It seemed to me, to continue meeting new folk, hearing stories and sharing those stories to the people they love the most, becoming a celebrant is a new bubble of joy. It’s an honour to give the journey of a life to people that love the person or people.”

A humanist ceremony is the perfect way to include anything you want. Let's have a blether.

Chris is based in Ayrshire and conducts ceremonies throughout Scotland.

Buen Camino!

You can contact Chris on chrisalexander@fuzeceremonies.co.uk or you can see more of Chris on Instagram

Jackie Jeffrey

May 5, 2014by Fuze Admin

Jackie Jeffrey, Celebrant

Jackie lives in a small Perthshire village with her partner and Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.

Known by family and friends as the Queen of organising, she really does love a list!

Having worked closely with people all her life, across different career paths, Jackie has always had a genuine interest in people and loves hearing all about their lives and experiences. She is a great peoples person, warm, funny, sincere and has a natural talent to write and tell a story.

Jackie is also a Life Coach, a role that commands a lot of listening and understanding but one that she finds very rewarding. Becoming a Celebrant was the next natural step for her, giving her the opportunity to continue learning peoples stories, meet amazing people and share their life events.

It is important to Jackie that you have a ceremony as unique as you and one that reflects your hopes and dreams for the future or honours the life you have lived.

Jackie is a very optimistic person and it will be an honour and a privilege for her to conduct your ceremony with professionalism and integrity and she won't eat all the wedding cake!

Lifes what you make it, make it the best life you possibly can.

Jackie is based in Perthshire and conducts ceremonies in Aberdeenshire & Moray, Ayrshire, Dumfries & Galloway, Edinburgh & Lothian, Glasgow City & East /West Dunbartonshire, Inverness-shire, Perthshire, Fife & Angus, Scottish Borders, Stirlingshire and Western Highlands & Islands.

You can contact Jackie on jackiejeffrey@fuzeceremonies.co.uk or you can see more of Jackie on Facebook and Instagram

Simon Houston

April 8, 2014by Fuze Admin

Simon Houston, Celebrant

Simon is available to conduct Weddings, Civil Partnerships, Vow Renewals, Baby Naming & Funeral Ceremonies.

Simon lives in Glasgow, has been married 25 years and has three wonderful children and a gorgeous Pug called Rita. He is a writer, public speaker and part-time stand-up comedian who is delighted to combine his many life skills to become a Humanist Celebrant. His career as a journalist has seen him work as a news correspondent and features writer all over the world. He got himself into the occasional hair-raising scrape while working as a war reporter in the Balkans and Middle East - and if you have a spare three hours, he'll happily tell you all about it!

A natural-born storyteller, he brings a wealth of experience to his new role with Fuze Ceremonies. Simon is a people person and a listener. He loves interviewing real people and hearing all about their own unique and interesting journeys - before bringing those stories to life, capturing the serious, the fascinating and the fun. He has become a skilled obituary writer who prides himself on his compassion, empathy and attention to detail.

Recently, he turned his hand to stand-up comedy and has performed in clubs around Scotland while also making his debut at the 2022 Edinburgh Fringe.

Having attended a number of Humanist weddings and funerals in recent years, he found himself magnetically drawn to the role of a Celebrant and looks forward to implementing his writing and speaking skills to deliver memorable ceremonies.

You can contact Simon on simonhouston@fuzeceremonies.co.uk or you can see more of Simon on Facebook and Instagram

Julie Murray

April 8, 2014by Fuze Admin

Julie Murray, Celebrant

Julie lives with her two teenagers and her gorgeous wee dog, Milo. There is never a dull moment! Julie lives in beautiful Broughty Ferry, where every day walking near the water, feels like you are on holiday.

Julie has always loved working in roles she believes in and where she feels she can make a difference. Her background is over 20 years as a Speech and Language Therapist, working with children and young people with autism and their families. More recently, she has been working to help people achieve their weight loss and wellness goals.

When she is not working, Julie loves going out for walks with her wee dog, building up her running … well, jogging! She loves crafting when she has time and getting creative. She also loves chilling in the house, watching a good movie.

Becoming a Celebrant combines Julie's love of helping people with her need to make a difference, providing ceremonies that are personal, meaningful, and tailored to each individual’s needs. She first became interested when she attended a lovely Humanist wedding ceremony some time ago.

Julie will bring warmth, compassion, empathy, and fun. She will be there to guide you and listen to how you want your special occasion to be.

You can contact Julie on juliemurray@fuzeceremonies.co.uk or you can see more of Julie on Facebook and Instagram

Julie-Anne Kinnear

April 8, 2014by Fuze Admin

Julie-Anne Kinnear

Julie-Anne is available to conduct Weddings, Civil Partnerships, Vow Renewals & Funeral Ceremonies.

Whether a love-story or life-story, Julie-Anne will listen to you and work with you to create your unique ceremony. As a Humanist Celebrant she will guide and support you when exploring specifics such as personalised vows, how you want your love-story or the life-story of a loved one to be shared, the music, poetry or readings you want to include, how you want to involve others (people or pets!) in the ceremony, inclusion of symbolic gestures and any other quirks or details to make your ceremony personal and meaningful.

Reflecting the values of Humanism, Julie-Anne embraces life wholeheartedly, believing this helps us to mark and celebrate the important stages from birth to death with vim, vigour and vitality. Whilst her ceremonies are appropriately dignified and respectful of the nature of the circumstances, they are never dull or dark – they have energy, light, emotion and where appropriate incorporate laughter and joy.

Julie-Anne moved from Belfast to Scotland aged 20. She has met lots of diverse and interesting people on her journey, all of whom have enriched her life one way or another. This quote from Dolly Parton sums up her outlook on life - “Dream more, learn more, care more and be more”.

Julie-Anne is based in Angus and covers Aberdeenshire & Moray, Edinburgh & Lothian, Inverness-shire & Perthshire, Fife & Angus.

You can contact Julie-Anne on julie-annekinnear@fuzeceremonies.co.uk or you can see more of Julie-Anne on Facebook and Instagram

Anna Nicol

April 18, 2010by Fuze Admin

Anna Nicol

Anna is available to conduct Vow Renewals & Funeral Ceremonies.

With a vibrant personality and a great sense of humour, Anna has a natural ability to captivate an audience and is a born storyteller. Bringing humour, inspiration and realism to ceremonies, whether that’s the joy of celebrating a new or established relationship or having the privilege and honour to celebrate the life and loss of a loved one.

Anna loves working with couples and families to find the perfect reading, or symbolic gesture to make a very personal and individual ceremony. She especially loves working with people who want to try something a little unusual, and her mantra is … ‘Don’t be afraid of being different, be afraid of being the same as everyone else’.

As an HR Manager, Anna's people skills are excellent, enabling her to build a quick understanding of what her clients are looking for, she’s a great listener and always manages to draw out what people want, even when they don’t know it themselves!

After 20 years in the corporate arena, Anna began to look for something more creative to channel her energies. Becoming a celebrant has given Anna an outlet for her creative writing, and she loves to hear people's life stories and turn them into beautiful, unique scripts, that are full of joy and laughter whether it's for a wedding or creating a memorable farewell for a loved one.

Anna is based in Angus and covers Aberdeenshire & Moray Perthshire, Fife & Angus.

You can contact Anna on annanicol@fuzeceremonies.co.uk or you can see more of Anna on Facebook and Instagram

Gayle Morrison

April 18, 2010by Fuze Admin

Gayle Morrison, Celebrant

Gayle is available for Vow Renewals & Baby Naming, and Funeral Ceremonies

Gayle is based in Stirling and covers Aberdeenshire & Moray, Ayrshire, Dumfries & Galloway, East Renfrewshire & Renfrewshire, Edinburgh & Lothian, Glasgow City & East /West Dunbartonshire, Inverness-shire, North & South Lanarkshire, Perthshire, Fife & Angus, Scottish Borders, and Stirlingshire

Gayle has always loved hearing the stories of people’s lives – where they were born and brought up, how couples met, trips they have taken that they refer back to for years to come, and moments of laughter and sadness that they carry with them. Gayle believes each turn of someone’s life can change the direction of their future, and being asked to pull this together for a Humanist Ceremony is something Gayle thrives on. Gayle focuses on keeping everything as personal as possible and telling the story of a life or lives.

Becoming a Humanist Celebrant was something Gayle was always interested in, but the moment had to be right, and when her daughter got engaged, that was the sign she needed. Putting the story of people’s lives to paper and bringing it all to life is something Gayle will never get bored of or take for granted. With each ceremony, she strives to represent those involved as best she can. Gayle is intrigued with life stories and believes there is no role like this. She loves finding out information about people where the phrase “never judge a book by its cover” is never more appropriate.

Gayle was raised in the Outer Hebrides and loves the outdoors. She is now based in Stirling, the heart of Scotland, and takes advantage of the vast open space available to walk and run in when she gets the chance. Gayle can talk for hours about her cat and loves to travel at any opportunity with her partner Robert. She has two grown-up children, both of whom are making their own way in the world, and she could not be prouder of them.

Gayle says ‘It is a huge honour to be asked to conduct a life moment, and I take that very seriously.’

You can contact Gayle on gaylemorrison@fuzeceremonies.co.uk or you can see more of Gayle on: Facebook , Instagram and YouTube