History was made on the Isle of Man, where Luke Carine and his boyfriend, Zac Tomlinson, were officially wed Saturday, reported the BBC. Although another couple preceded them in legally converting their same-sex partnership into a marriage, Carine and Tomlinson were the first to be married since it became legal there last month.
The Isle of Man, located nearly equidistant from England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, is what’s called a self-governing British Crown dependency, with its own laws and government. Until 1992, homosexuality was illegal there, and the Marriage and Civil Partnership Act that made same-sex marriage legal became effective July 22.
The proud Manxmen have been together six years and currently live in Manchester, in the U.K. But Tomlinson and Carine told the BBC that it “meant the world” to them to have their hometown family and friends by their side for the ceremony, held in the Manx town hall in Ramsey with 70 relatives and friends serving as witnesses. A reception attended by 130 guests followed at the Fun Barn in Onchan.
“We came home to get married surrounded by family and friends, ” Carine told the Isle of Man Today. “It feels amazing to be the first couple to have a ceremony.”
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Carine, 26, and Tomlinson, 22, work as ophthalmic science practitioners at Manchester Royal Eye Hospital.
