REDESDALE'S snowploughing teams saved two weddings at the weekend when they dug a way in across the wintry wastes.

When the first alert went out that car loads of wedding guests were trying to reach Le Petit Château at Otterburn on Friday afternoon for a wedding the next day, contractors Ross Corbett, Alan Cowan and Adam Peart and their respective teams swung into action.

"The A696 at Ottercops was totally blocked," said Ross, "so the guests organised a convoy, congregating in Ponteland, and then drove up to meet us at Knowesgate garage.

"We then took them down the road to Bellingham, across to Ridsdale and then up to Otterburn. I counted 29 cars in all."

Just as all the guests were delivered safe and sound for the nuptials of bride and groom Michelle and Ollie Meikle, of Blyth, the team received an SOS that the woman delivering the cake was stuck. By now it was 8pm and dark, so off they went to rescue her too.

Then they received a call asking if they could do it all again for another wedding, due to take place the next day, this time at Woodhill Hall on the outskirts of Otterburn.

Keen not to see anybody's big day ruined, the teams duly obliged. Doing something of a round robin on Saturday, they guided the Woodhill Hall guests in and then went round to Le Petit Chateau to lead those guests back out.

"We got tips from both wedding parties, so we're going to have a night out - we're calling it the ploughmen's dinner," Ross laughed.