In the Bodleian Weddings Team, we’ve seen a real trend for Small Weddings over this year. We can certainly see why; sharing your love with just a small group of your closest family and friends in an intimate ceremony can really help make the big day feel even more special.
We offer our Small Wedding packages on Weekdays and Sundays, perfect for couples who are looking for a more relaxed day outside of the hustle and bustle of a Saturday. A quick little top tip is that some suppliers might even offer reduced rates outside of Saturdays, so it’s always worth thinking about being slightly off-peak. Additionally, do have a look at the calendar when thinking about your Small Wedding. If you pick a Bank Holiday Weekend, a Sunday is just as good as a Saturday (or a Monday as good as a Sunday even!).
At one of our recent Small Weddings, we also received this incredible feedback from the happy couple;
From start to finish, your professionalism, attention to detail, and calm guidance made the entire experience seamless and enjoyable. The day ran so smoothly, and we know how much work goes on behind the scenes to make that happen. We felt truly supported every step of the way.
Thank you again for helping to make our wedding day so memorable — it really was everything we had hoped for.
With such excellent praise, how can you not opt for a Small Wedding at the Bodleian? So, in this journal post – we’ve decided to focus on just everything we can offer for couples thinking about a small celebration. All of the photography in this journal entry uses real Small Weddings at the Bodleian, to give you a true visual look at what your day could look like. Do continue reading below for ideas and inspiration about your intimate and idyllic wedding day at the Bodleian.
Small Ceremonies
Our Small Ceremonies are perfect for a romantic elopement, with maybe a few very close family and friends in attendance. The venue for our Small Ceremonies is the Convocation House, a 17th Century chamber with a rich wooden interior and stunning ceiling. Adjoining the Convocation House is the Chancellors Court, which dates from the same time. The Chancellors Court is where you will wait before walking down the aisle and contains a large table, ideal for guests to drop off gifts and cards.
The hire time is 2 hours, which includes set up, ceremony, and pack down. With the Small Ceremony Only option, you can pick a 2 hour slot from between 10:00 – 17:00. Please do see below for an example timeline:
Example Timings:
10:00: Venue opens – for a legal wedding conducted by registrars, we are required by law to open the venue one hour before the ceremony. Any suppliers will also be able to access the venue from this time.
10:30: Guests arrive – Guests arrive via the Chancellors Court to take a seat in the Convocation House.
10:45: Guests seated – we ask all guests are seated by this time to ensure a prompt start to the Ceremony.
11:00: Wedding ceremony – for a legal wedding conducted by registrars, these only take place on the hour.
11:30: Wedding ceremony to conclude at this point – couple and guests can take photography in both the Convocation House & Chancellors Court.
11:45: Guests depart – We ask all guests to depart by this point so we can begin Venue pack down. We would also ask that any décor or florals are also taken by guests for the pack down.
12:00: Venue close – Venue pack down completed.
As you can see, the Ceremony option is ideal for couples looking to get married with only a small group of family or intimate friends in attendance. We quite often find couples who have a ceremony at the Bodleian chose to have their reception in one of the local restaurants or luxury hotels in the area. But, if you would like to continue your time at the Bodleian (why wouldn’t you?) we do have two further options.
Ceremony & Lunch
Our Ceremony & Lunch offer is ideal for couples who want to have the Wedding Breakfast in the same venue but are not keen on staying up late. As with the Ceremony Only option above, your ceremony space will be the Convocation House – but instead your guests will enter via the Wren Door into our iconic 15th Century Divinity School with its gothic Medieval glamour, before walking through to take their seats in the Convocation House.
Our Ceremony & Lunch is a 7-hour hire, including set up and venue pack down. For catering, we ask that you use our Exclusive Wedding caterer, Oxford Fine Dining. Oxford Fine Dining also arranges all your furniture, linen, porcelain, glassware and cutlery as well, so the entire wedding breakfast is taken care of! We should also mention that Oxford Fine Dining have also introduced a wedding planning service, if you want to fully relax ahead of your day! Do see below for our timings for the day;
Hire Timings:
10:00: Venue opens – for a legal wedding conducted by registrars, we are required by law to open the venue one hour before the ceremony. Any suppliers will also be able to access the venue from this time.
10:30: Guests arrive – Guests arrive via the Wren Door into the Divinity School to take a seat in the Convocation House. En route to the ceremony space, we will also have a table set up for any gifts or cards.
10:45: Guests seated – we ask all guests are seated by this time to ensure a prompt start to the Ceremony.
11:00: Wedding ceremony – for a legal wedding conducted by registrars, these only take place on the hour.
11:30: Wedding ceremony to conclude at this point – couple and guests will then move into the Divinity School for a Drinks Reception with Canapes. Weather depending, this can also take place just outside next to the Wren Door as well.
12:30: Call to dine – Lunch is served in the Divinity School. Speeches can take place either between courses or after the cutting of the cake.
15:30: Lunch service to conclude
15:45: Guests to begin to depart by this time.
16:00: We ask all guests to depart by this point so we can begin Venue pack down. We would also ask that any decor or florals are also taken by guests for the pack down.
17:00: Venue close – Venue pack down completed.
But if you happen to be more of a night owl than an early bird, we do also have our Ceremony & Evening Meal option as well.
Ceremony & Evening Meal
The Ceremony & Evening Meal option is ideal for couples who want a little bit of an evening party, before either retiring early or perhaps heading out with a small group for the rest of the night! With our evening hire, you also get to experience the Divinity School in all its glory with its incredible features up-lit.
We should mention at this time, that our Small Ceremony & Reception package does not include the hire of our AV & Lighting partners, THAT Event Company. You’ll need to contact them separately for a quote for the uplighting and any other needs (such as a PA or microphone).
Hire Timings:
16:00: Venue opens – for a legal wedding conducted by registrars, we are required by law to open the venue one hour before the ceremony. Any suppliers will also be able to access the venue from this time.
16:30: Guests arrive – Guests arrive via the Wren Door into the Divinity School to take a seat in the Convocation House. En route to the ceremony space, we will also have a table set up for any gifts or cards.
16:45: Guests seated – we ask all guests are seated by this time to ensure a prompt start to the Ceremony.
17:00: Wedding ceremony – for a legal wedding conducted by registrars, these only take place on the hour.
17:30: Wedding ceremony to conclude at this point – couple and guests will then move into the Divinity School for a Drinks Reception with Canapes. Weather depending, this can also take place just outside next to the Wren Door as well.
18:30: Call to dine – Dinner is served in the Divinity School. Speeches can take place either between courses or after the cutting of the cake.
20:30: Evening reception with low level music – we are unable to play amplified music before 21:00 on weekdays due to the building being a working library and readers are present upstairs. On a Sunday this is also contingent due to the Sheldonian Theatre and if they have a concert on. In addition to low level music played through a speaker, any acoustic live music is also fine.
21:15: Guests to begin to depart by this time.
21:30: We ask all guests to depart by this point so we can begin Venue pack down. We would also ask that any decor or florals are also taken by guests for the pack down.
22:30: Venue close – Venue pack down completed.
If Small Wedding at the Bodleian seems like the intimate and idyllic venue for you, then please do not hesitate to get in touch with the team to discuss your big ideas for your big day! In the meantime, do take a look at our recommended suppliers, all of whom are dedicated to making your wedding day one to remember.
Likewise, if you’d like to meet some of our suppliers and also view our dreamy venue all in one day, then do think about booking for our Wedding Venue Open Day on 5 October 2025, we would love to meet you!
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