Folks, we are in the last months of the year when weddings are commonplace. Contrary to popular belief, weddings are not rosy affairs — where everything goes on perfectly as planned. On-time, mishap-free and perfect weddings only happen in soap operas and movies.

In the movies, newly-married couples — giggly and all smiles — always jump into a car with a “just married” banner, leaving everyone green with envy. It’s always assumed the two love birds are headed to an idealistic paradise for their honeymoon where love will be so intense that the bride will return pregnant!

But in real life and behind the veneer of glamour, pomp and colour, weddings are actually — oops! — a farce. Besides the now-common cases of a jilted lover or concubine storming the venue and interrupting the exchange of vows, so many things normally go horribly wrong on this special day. Even the most meticulously planned nuptials are not immune to some of these embarrassing incidents.

Mother stealing the show

First off, there is the small matter of some parents turning themselves into nuisances and ruining the day. A tale is told of a well-known dramatic and pompous woman who not only caused drama, but also stole the show at her daughter’s wedding.

Keen not to ‘stoop so low’, the grandiose mother-in-law turned down a ride in a Pajero that had been reserved for her trip to the reception, and demanded to ride in the special limo that had been set aside for the bride and her maid of honour.

To save face and avoid embarrassment, panic-stricken wedding organisers had to quickly make adjustments. The aging drama queen was not done yet. Upon arriving at the reception, being the high-profile senior citizen and prima donna that she is, she took the game a notch higher and further stole the show when her bodyguard was seen closely manning her, attracting unnecessary attention in the process.

What’s more, she caused paparazzi to fall over themselves, trying to take the best shots of her bulbous and bulgy headgear, which turned out to be a bigger story than the wedding itself! Talk of a mother stealing her daughter’s limelight!

Embarrassing speeches

At yet another recent wedding reception in Nairobi’s Karen estate, the mother of the groom (suspected to be a mama’s boy), launched into a very long and boring speech, embarrassing the young man in the process.

For close to 45 minutes, the mother bored guests with long-winded tales of how it was such a bother and Herculean task bringing up and educating the groom. But there were some flashes of comedic genius.