Psychic bride has Halloween-themed wedding to her ‘sexy Count Dracula’ groom after years of graveyard dates

A couple who take romantic trips to graveyards together have had a Halloween-themed wedding complete with coffin ring boxes, skeleton decorations and a “Gothic sexy Count Dracula” groom – and are now planning a haunting honeymoon visiting all of the “witchy places” in the UK.

Katie Rigley, 26, a psychic and stay-at-home mum, and Lewis Rigley, 29, a freight forwarding apprentice, who live in Middlesbrough with their nine-month old daughter Alice, met nine years ago, and began dating in 2019.

In the early days of the relationship, they bonded over their love of horror movies and even visited cemeteries together.

Katie claims she can contact the dead, often seeing her granddad’s ghost in her house, which she finds “quite comforting”, and conducts charms, healings and punishments.

In March 2020, Lewis popped the question, and the pair had a Halloween-themed wedding at Danby Castle in Whitby, on June 18 2023, which their guests were not surprised at, and did not expect “anything less” from Katie.

Katie, with the help of her mum, even handmade all of the quirky decorations, such as skeletons, place settings and a seating chart, for just £150.

The couple are now planning a honeymoon involving a visit to all of the places in the UK which had witch trials, and hope to “incorporate some bits of Paganism” into their daughter’s life over time.

Katie told PA Real Life: “For the wedding, me and my mum spray-painted the letters ‘Mr and Mrs’ red and black, we also had two six-foot skeletons – I glued a wig and a veil on one and a bow-tie on the other.

“They started off quite PG but by the end of the night guests put them in different precarious positions!

“We had Gothic mirrors, coffin ring boxes, and the bridesmaids wore skeleton clips in their hair, and we even had a lot of our wedding pictures in a cemetery – the photographer was amazing.

“The tailor that made Lewis’ wedding suit, did an amazing job and really listened to what he wanted, and gave him the Gothic sexy Count Dracula look he wanted.

“My mum also made our wedding cake with skeleton figures to suit the theme.”

Katie and Lewis first met nine years ago, while on a training course in Leicester, and reconnected in 2019, and began dating.

The pair bonded over their love for horror films, and have even visited cemeteries on “really foggy nights” together so Katie could contact the spirit world.

She said: “I’ve been able to communicate with the dead since age 12.

“I’m clairvoyant – so, basically, if anyone has anyone who’s passed away, I can see pictures of them in my head, I can talk with them.

“I also do Tarot readings, healings, punishments, and purify spaces, as well as charms.

“There’s loads of ghosts in our house – I can often see them walking about, and I see my granddad a lot, which is quite comforting in a way.”

On the strangest experiences she has had with the occult, she said: “I was in my mate’s car and I just had this really weird feeling, and I was directing us unknowingly to this road.

“All of a sudden, I felt really sick, which is one of the signs that there is a strong presence, and I could hear something, then this Victorian woman came across to the car, and my friend slammed on her brakes.

“I also once did a reading for a friend where I suddenly got a pain in my head, and I felt like I could only breathe out of one of my lungs, and it turned out they had a family member who died of lung cancer which spread to their brain.”

Over time, Lewis has developed a growing interest in the beyond, and in March 2020, he popped the question.

He said: “It was the middle of lockdown so there were no fancy restaurants or anything like that open.

“We walked along Saltburn Pier and had a little picnic on the beach, then she made me laugh and I just said ‘Marry me’ and she laughed, and I was like, ‘No, seriously will you marry me?’.”

Katie joked: “He didn’t get down on one knee! He gave me the box and I ran off with it saying I’m sorted now.”

As soon as the pair began wedding-planning, Katie made it clear that she wanted a spooky theme.

She said: “For me, there was never any other option than having a Gothic Victorian theme.”

Lewis added: “I loved all of Katie’s ideas and I helped her here and there.”

On their big day, at Danby Castle, Whitby, a Gilchrist Collection venue, on June 18 2023, the couple had a red and black theme.

Katie explained: “We really liked the venue, aesthetically, it was just what we wanted for our Gothic and Halloween-style wedding.

“The history of the castle, and its location were also a big factor for us – the staff really went out of their way to cater to our needs and give us the wedding we envisioned.”

Katie explained the guests’ reactions: “I don’t think they expected anything less from me.

“I think some guests were expecting it to be a bit tacky, but they loved how professional it looked.”

Speaking about the honeymoon plans, Lewis said: “We want to go around travelling on my motorbike to all of the witchy sites in the UK, once Alice is a bit older, for our honeymoon.

“We’d also love to do the summer solstice at Stonehenge.

“We’re going to incorporate some bits of Paganism into Alice’s life, and if she picks it up, that would be great, but we’re not putting any pressure on it.”