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A bride was left stranded on the way to her own wedding when a lorry caught fire on a motorway.
Ashford spouse-to-be Laura Luckhurst found herself standing on the M20 following the incident on Saturday.
The 28-year-old was faced with the unbearable situation after already having to reorganise her wedding to fiancé Michael five times.
The Kennington pair had originally planned on holding a ceremony at Hayne House in Hythe last summer, but the emergence of coronavirus and the ensuing lockdowns meant that they had to reschedule.
Mr Luckhurst said: "We were originally looking at August of last year, then we moved to November, then December, then March... and then finally this weekend."
But after twelve-and-a-half years together, the pair were finally due to tie the knot at Archbishop's Palace in Maidstone before another barrier arrived in the form of a burning HGV.
Traffic was stopped on the London-bound carriageway Junction 9 for Ashford and Junction 8 for Hollingbourne the blaze at about 11am.
An almost unimaginable nightmare scenario saw Mrs Luckhurst – who had already kept her maiden name of Wraight longer than anticipated – stranded for four hours.
Mrs Luckhurst said: "It was incredibly difficult. I was there with my nephew Joshua who was my page boy, his dad Michael and my dad Paul.
"I was trying so hard not to panic. I feel like I did a good job of staying calm on the outside because I didn't want Joshua to worry, but inside I was shaking.
"My dad is diabetic as well, and we were so lucky that he had some chocolate with him – because if he had taken a turn for the worse that would be another emergency".
Naturally, the bride – decked out head to toe in white – drew a lot of attention from her fellow motorway incumbents when she stepped out to stretch her legs.
'I was trying so hard not to panic... inside, I was shaking...'
"I'm not a massive fan of too much attention," she explained, "but after about two hours I couldn't stay cooped up any more.
"A few people came over to talk to me, and one lady was even kind enough to give me a cider; which was something I needed, believe me!
"Just before we started moving again, a little girl gave me a drawing that she had done of me in my dress, which is something that I will definitely cherish, it was lovely."
Two lanes of the carriageway were finally reopened at around 2.30pm, but by the time the bride reached her destination, it was past 5pm.
Mr Luckhurst said: "It was about quarter past five when we actually got married. The venue was supposed to close at five, but they were so lovely and understanding".
Best man Darren Parris said the couple had to deal with constant changes and unwelcome surprises in the lead up to Saturday.
"They are a great couple, wonderful together" he said, "and they have just been so unlucky over the last 14 months or so".
In fact, the constant changing of restrictions and lack of clarity meant that the couple had to move their date a total four times, and the best part of a calendar year, from its original slot.
The situation reached its pinnacle in December, when a last-minute move by the government once again put things in jeapordy.
Mr Parris explained: "Well you talk about having to delay or move things at the last minute, but that is really quite literally what they had to do.
"They were due to have it at Hayne House again on the 20th of December, only for the government to announce tier four quite literally the evening before the ceremony!"
Irregardless of the strife leading up to their big day, the couple say that they could not be happier together.
"We're so very happy", said Mrs Luckhurst, "We've been together 13 years this year and engaged for three, it's been a long time coming all in all!"
