{"id":615695,"date":"2026-08-01T20:52:13","date_gmt":"2026-08-01T20:52:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/615695\/"},"modified":"2026-08-01T20:52:13","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T20:52:13","slug":"wedding-of-the-week-our-kerry-wedding-was-like-living-in-a-movie-scene","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/615695\/","title":{"rendered":"Wedding of the Week: Our Kerry wedding was like living in a movie scene"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the real-world gateway to Luke Skywalker\u2019s ocean planet exile, Valentia is forever linked to the Star Wars universe. But it took zero Jedi tricks to get a resounding \u201cI do\u201d from Fernanda Ferreira and Brian O\u2019Connor when they decided to tie the knot in Kerry.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was like living in a movie scene.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fernanda, from Sao Paolo, Brazil, and Brian were wed on his native Valentia Island on June 26, at The Royal Valentia Hotel, Knightstown, and held their reception in the same venue.<\/p>\n

No lightsabers were needed, just pure cinematic brilliance, as photographer Conor Healy (conorhealyphoto.com<\/a>) and videographer Niall Ashe worked behind the lens.<\/p>\n

\"FernandaFernanda Ferreira and Brian O’Connor. Pictures: Conor Healy Photography<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving the wedding on Valentia Island and having all the photos taken there was particularly special for us as it\u2019s my homeplace,\u201d says Brian.<\/p>\n

As a professional videographer himself, Brian has an eye for picture-perfect shots.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe lighthouse is a key feature of the island, so being able to integrate that into our photos, along with the sea and rocks, made for some striking images,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Fernanda adds: \u201cWith the stunning views, it made the moment feel even more magical; it felt like we were living a scene from a film.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"FernandaFernanda Ferreira and Brian O’Connor with the wedding party. Pictures: Conor Healy Photography<\/p>\n

Playing key roles were Fernanda\u2019s mother and father, Maria Aparecida Ferreira and Fernando Ferreira, and Brian\u2019s parents, Colette and Pat O\u2019Connor. The bride said: \u201cWe loved being surrounded by so many family and friends on our wedding day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fernanda chose her aunt, Terezinha Barboza, to be her chief bridesmaid, and her bridesmaids were Aine O\u2019Connor (Brian\u2019s sister) and Fabi Tavara Nash.<\/p>\n

Brian\u2019s brother Shane O\u2019Connor was by his side as best man, as were his friend Conor \u2018Paris\u2019 Murphy and cousin Niall O\u2019Connor as groomsmen. The groom\u2019s nieces Amelia Rose and Ada O\u2019Connor were the flowergirls.<\/p>\n

\"FernandaFernanda Ferreira and Brian O\u2019Connor with both sets of parents Fernando and Maria Ferreira and Colette and Pat O’Connor. Pictures: Conor Healy Photography <\/p>\n

Fernanda and Brian\u2019s paths first crossed in August 2023, at The Black Wolf-Beer & Food Co, in Blanchardstown, Dublin.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a Manchester United match on the TV at the time, and we got talking about football, especially because of Fernanda\u2019s Brazilian\/Portuguese background. And the rest is history as they say,\u201d says Brian.<\/p>\n

Two and a half years later, they got engaged, on Christmas Day.<\/p>\n

Their wedding lived up to their every expectation, from the moment violinist and cellist Ryan Parsons and Georgina Fennessy struck up the music for the ceremony, led by celebrant Kelsey N\u00ed Sh\u00failleabh\u00e1in.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe felt calm, relaxed, and excited on arrival,\u201d says Brian.<\/p>\n

\"FernandaFernanda Ferreira arrives on the arm of her dad Fernando for the wedding ceremony. Pictures: Conor Healy<\/p>\n

Irish trad instrumentalists Loinnir entertained at the drinks reception and later The Bansha Boys Band kept the momentum going, with the couple in the spotlight for their first dance to Camylio\u2019s high, high, high.<\/p>\n

The bride chose a Mori Lee wedding gown: \u201cFinding my dress at Vows in Cork was a truly special experience. It was an emotional day, with my mom travelling all the way from Portugal to be there and my mother-in-law coming from Valentia to share this unforgettable moment with me. It was the third dress I tried on. The moment I wore it, my eyes lit up. I knew instantly it was the one.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sarah Ann O\u2019Dwyer (Sarah Ann Bridal), Caherciveen, and Ella Corcoran (Sculpted by Ella), Valentia, were the hair and make-up team. Brian and his attendants sourced their suits at Connolly Man, Patrick St, Limerick.<\/p>\n

\"FernandaFernanda Ferreira and Brian O\u2019Connor with the groom’s family. Pictures: Conor Healy Photography <\/p>\n

Terry Cunningham of Shades of Bloom, Killorglin, created the floral arrangements and d\u00e9cor, and Alla Muammer baked the wedding cake.<\/p>\n

The newlyweds will honeymoon this month in Italy.<\/p>\n

Fernanda, who works in procurement, and Brian, a videographer and editor who has his own company, Brianoval Productions, live in Annacotty, Limerick.<\/p>\n

If you would like your wedding in Weekend, email eve.kelliher@examiner.ie<\/a>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As the real-world gateway to Luke Skywalker\u2019s ocean planet exile, Valentia is forever linked to the Star Wars…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":615696,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[75],"tags":[18,117,19,17,24594,7263],"class_list":["post-615695","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-eire","tag-entertainment","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-wedding-of-the-week","tag-weddings"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/117022239365383724","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/615695","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=615695"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/615695\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/615696"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=615695"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=615695"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=615695"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}