Marisa Abela Wore Emilia Wickstead for Her Old Hollywood–Inspired Wedding to Jamie Bogyo in East Sussex
Actors Marisa Abela and Jamie Bogyo first met when they were in the same year at the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 2016. “We were best friends throughout the course, and Jamie finally asked me out when we were graduating in 2019,” Marisa, who is known for her role in the HBO series Industry and for playing Amy Winehouse in the biopic Back to Black, remembers. “We’ve been together ever since.”
In 2024, Jamie, who has starred in the West End shows The Devil Wears Prada and Moulin Rouge! The Musical, proposed on Primrose Hill. “This was where we met for the very first time at a meet-and-greet for the class of 2016. He hit on me immediately,” Marisa says. “It was amazing to be back where Jamie had literally walked into my life for the very first time.”
Jamie wanted to ensure the proposal remained a surprise, so he enlisted Marisa’s friend Polly to help create a fake art show that was supposedly happening across the street from Primrose Hill. “Polly marched her up to the top of the hill and ran in the other direction when Marisa finally saw the picnic blanket and Champagne—then I came out of the trees and got on one knee,” Jamie recalls. “Afterward, I took her to dinner at Bocca di Lupo, one of our favorite restaurants in London. I made up some excuse as to why we needed to go downstairs, and all of her family and friends were waiting for us in the private dining room.”
“It was the best day of my life,” Marisa adds. “The next day we already had a holiday planned in Greece, so we sort of had an ‘engagement moon’—we highly recommend it!”
The couple set their wedding date for Saturday, September 13, in East Sussex. “We took a good few months to just enjoy being engaged and celebrate during the summer,” Jamie says. “In September, we started thinking about locations, and we landed in Brighton. Marisa was born and raised there, and it’s where we spent lockdown together.”
At that point, the couple had only been together for two months. “It was a real jump in the deep end to have Jamie move in with me, my mum, and my brother instead of flying back to New York,” Marisa admits. “Miraculously, it worked!” They often spent time taking walks on the Sussex Downs or down by the sea, so Brighton began to feel like home.
“Things really fell into place once we found our ceremony and dinner locations,” Marisa explains. “We wanted to lean into our love of classic, nostalgic romance with our ceremony.” They quickly settled on Firle Place in East Sussex for the ceremony, a manor house dating back to the 15th century. “Firle Place is such a beautiful home with so much character, and I fell in love with the drama of those big blue doors. But it was equally as important to let our friends really get loose at dinner, so the Soho House in Brighton was perfect.”
The couple worked with Katrina Otter Weddings to plan the entirety of the weekend. “She’s amazing and deserves a Pride of Britain award for her efforts,” Marisa jokes. “We’ve both been filming or rehearsing throughout this planning process, so to have someone being our eyes, ears, and the rest has meant we can really have fun with the process. She’s kind to everyone, respectful to everyone, she has an amazing eye, and she’s very patient with Jamie and me. Huge win.”
Marisa’s friend and stylist, Aimée Croysdill, helped bring the bride’s dream dresses and Jamie’s suit and tuxedo to fruition. “We made a choice early on to go for British female designers for clothing and jewelry,” Marisa says. “There’s something so beautiful about having my dress made nearby.”
For the rehearsal dinner, Marisa wore a bespoke The Own Studio dress and a Noel Stewart hat. “There’s a photo of Marilyn Monroe in a strapless dress with a shawl that I sent to them and to Aimée,” Marisa remembers. “That was the vibe, and they absolutely nailed it. I wanted it to feel bridal but sexy and chic and playful.”
Both Marisa and Jamie have always had a love for classic movies, Old Hollywood glamour, and all-consuming romance. Some of their favorite films include Singin’ in the Rain, Cinema Paradiso, Funny Girl, and West Side Story—and they wanted to infuse their wedding with that maximalist spirit. “We are both theatrical,” Marisa says. “And we don’t shy away from a touch of drama when it feels appropriate, so I knew I wanted my wedding dress to feel like a real moment.”
She and Aimée quickly decided to turn to Emilia Wickstead, whose classically glamorous designs felt like the perfect fit. “Emilia creates dresses with such timeless elegance, so I knew she would understand my references immediately,” Marisa notes. Audrey Hepburn was her main inspiration: From her drop-waisted wedding dress in Funny Face to the couture Givenchy gown she wore in Amsterdam in 1954 to a headshot of her with a diamond necklace in her hair. The bride’s own headpiece, featuring vintage diamonds, came courtesy of another British brand: Mayfair jeweler Bentley Skinner.
The dress, which took over 250 hours to make, was constructed from 20 meters of silk duchesse satin, with a drop waist and a draped off-the-shoulder micro-sleeve molded to the bride’s arms atop a structured corset. Meanwhile, the train with its double-folded sculptural pleats was nearly three meters long. “If I had to do this all over again, a million times, I would choose working with Emilia every single one,” Marisa says. “Her attention to detail, her love of women’s bodies, her desire for perfection is unparalleled.” For her accessories, the bride wore Jimmy Choo Max 150s, which were color-matched to her dress and personalized with the couple’s initials on the sole.
Jamie wore a tuxedo by Dunhill. “The brand represents the absolute best of British tailoring,” Jamie says. “It gave me the classic silhouette and impeccable craftsmanship any man would want for their wedding tux. I’ve never felt so cool. In addition, they also gave us one-on-one attention and understood that Aimée and I wanted to take my look to a new level of modern, structural elegance. With our running theme of ‘female-led design,’ we were fortunate enough to know a female cutter at Dunhill, who we asked to be placed with, and Dunhill very kindly agreed. My only note coming in was I wanted a very nice double-breasted tuxedo, and the result was beyond my wildest expectations.” To accessorize, both the bride and groom wore Jacques Marie Mage sunglasses, and Jamie completed his look with shoes by Jimmy Choo.
