Meet Fred Sirieix - Ultimate Wedding Planner Judge

It was being a guest to these six wonderful weddings. They were all very different and showed the difference in ideas and how couples want to celebrate their union, and I really like that. Working with two pros like Raj and Sara as judges was great because we had the same vision and we experienced the same things, which allowed us to be a good team of judges. We could really trust and rely on each other when we needed it. Lastly, it was great to be working with all the wedding planners, to help and support them along the way. It was a great opportunity for them to learn from Sara, Raj and myself as experts and to get better at their job. It was also great, at the end, to judge who would be crowned the ultimate wedding planner.

Without spoilers, were there any moments that blew you away?

All of the weddings. At the end of the day, it was seeing the look on the faces of the couples and how happy they were. That blew me away every time.

Were there any mishaps?

From the very first wedding, when the planners said the wedding started at 11am and they were not ready in time. The planners’ sometimes inability to deliver on time could be frustrating.

How much did you have to intervene to help the planners?

There were a few interventions where I had to point out what was going wrong or I had to go behind the scenes and tell them they had forgotten something very important. At the end of the day, we had to remember that it was the wedding of a real-life couple, and we couldn’t disappoint them, so sometimes we did have to intervene. We still judged the planners on their performance and took what they had forgotten into consideration.

What’s your favourite aspect of a wedding?

My favourite aspect is the ceremony. I love the ceremony.

What did you enjoy most about being a judge?

I had to decide, along with the other judges, who was going to be the winner. And I think it’s important to have high standards, to have a clear vision, very very clear values and to make sure that the winner is a true professional who knows their job. Somebody that will represent the profession with pride and that people will look up to, that’s our responsibility. It’s a big responsibility because by choosing the winner we are setting the standard, and we are saying what good looks like.

Sum up Ultimate Wedding Planner in three words.

Fun, competition, tense.

Why should we watch Ultimate Wedding Planner?

It’s a very entertaining show. You can sit there with a cup of tea or a glass of wine and just watch it without worrying about the world. It's an interesting insight into couples who want different weddings and for the planners, whether they are capable to deliver it. There’s a lot to it and you get to understand and know the planners’ characters very well. It does it all, it makes you laugh and it makes you cry. You start to root for the competitors and guess who you think will win.

Do you have any tips for viewers planning their wedding?

Get a good wedding planner!