First Dates: Sheffield woman marries man she met on TV show and who has five years to live

Mike Sumner, aged 38, who has Motor Neurone Disease, tied the knot with Zoe Welch, 31, in a relative's garden, in West Yorkshire. The couple live together in Sheffield, where Zoe works in a bank.

The pair - who met on Channel 4's dating show First Dates in March 2020 and are remembered for Zoe's impressive downing of a pint - planned their wedding in just three months after Mike's health started to deteriorate. The couple chose to have a small official ceremony at Sheffield Town Hall followed by a wedding celebration with their family in a relative's garden.

Mike arrived in a DeLorean car, from his favourite film Back to the Future, and Zoe downed a pint of squash - recreating the stand-out moment from their first date, where she downed a pint after just meeting Mike. Now happily married, the couple hope to cherish the time they have left together and have plans for a honeymoon in Italy next year.

Mike, who was training to be a driving instructor before his diagnosis and originally from Grimsby, said: “It was surreal seeing Zoe walk down the aisle in her dress. She looked amazing and then I got emotional at the ceremony. It was fun turning up in the DeLorean car and seeing the guests' reactions.”

Zoe said: “We wanted to have a non-traditional wedding and had just 20 people in the garden. It was such a special day.

“I helped Mike get ready and then went off to get ready, so my outfit was a surprise to him when he saw me. On our first date I downed a pint of beer so we recreated that moment, but I did it with squash as I'd already had a few drinks.”

The pair met on First Dates, and although they didn't have a romantic spark at first they hit it off as friends. Mike said: “I travelled from Grimsby on the train and it felt like a journey into the unknown, I was nervous.

“I arrived first and was taken to speak to the barman, Merlin. He was fun, we chatted about the future, the 80s and electric cars and I explained why I can't drink strong beer as it doesn't agree with me.”

Zoe added: “They didn't want Mike and I to see each other before the date so they hid me round the corner outside. I hadn't brought a coat with me, so I was freezing cold, I kept thinking 'are we going in yet?'.

“It was surreal when I walked into the restaurant I was like 'oh there's Fred, there's Merlin'. I only spoke to Fred for a minute but he was just as nice as he is on TV.

“I was jealous Mike got to spend more time with Merlin, I spoke to him when I ordered a pint. There were little cameras dotted around everywhere but you soon forget they're there.

“There wasn't an instant spark between us but I thought 'let's get to know each other and see where it goes'. I did notice his bright blue eyes.”

Mike added: “I thought she was fun and really easy to talk to.”

Zoe said: “I'm so glad we went on First Dates. We each thought we'd just go on it for fun, and the fact we found someone we got on with is amazing. We have no regrets.”

After hitting it off on their date as friends, they stayed in touch and were both devastated when Mike got diagnosed with MND in November 2020.

“I was crushed,” Zoe said. “I really cared for Mike and knew I would support him through it all.”

The friends met up for the first time since their date in June 2021 and continued to go to concerts, dinner and drinks together. The pair realised their romantic feelings for each other in September 2021 and Mike moved to Sheffield to live with Zoe.

“From that day on, we became a couple, and vowed to live each day to its fullest - taking mini-breaks away, getting out in the sunshine and generally seizing the moment,” Zoe said.

Mike's condition caused him to deteriorate quickly - going from walking with a stick to needing a wheelchair in 12 months.

Mike proposed to Zoe in March 2022, while on holiday in Florida, USA, and the pair decided to set their wedding for September when family and friends advised it might be better to do it sooner rather than later.

“We don't know how much time we have so we wanted to do it sooner rather than later,” Zoe said. “We only decided in July that we would get married in September, so it's been a rush to arrange it all.”

They opted for a legal ceremony at the registry office in August 2022 followed by a small wedding celebration in a relative's garden in September of this year.

“We decided on a purple theme as we both like the colour and love Dairy Milk,” Zoe said. “All the table decorations and cake were purple, and Mike's tie was purple and the skirt of my dress.”

The newlyweds are now set to have a mini-moon in York and hope to go to Italy next year for their honeymoon.