Chelsea, 29 and Jake Taylor, 30, are both doctors who care about clean water (Pictures: SWNS)
A couple who recently got married have decided to spend their honeymoon in the most romantic way possible – cleaning toilets at Glastonbury.
Chelsea, 29 and Jake Taylor, 30, tied the knot last week and then held a traditional handfasting ceremony at the festival on Wednesday – a Celtic ritual where two people tie their hands together to represent their commitment to each other.
The pair, from Newcastle, then decided that they would honeymoon at Glasto, which saw Worthy Farm’s gates open yesterday.
But they didn’t even try to buy tickets to the world-famous festival, opting instead to volunteer with WaterAid and take on toilet-cleaning shifts.
It makes more sense when you factor in that the couple are both doctors who are passionate about global access to clean water.
In fact, this issue, the charity WaterAid and indeed even toilets were all part of how Chelsea and Jake met.
Chelsea said: ‘It’s a funny story because we actually met talking about WaterAid at a charity social at university in Newcastle.
Chelsea and Jake Taylor during a toilet-cleaning shift (Picture: SWNS)
Chelsea and Jake took part in a handfasting ceremony at the festival (Picture: SWNS)
‘It’s like destiny to be cleaning toilets for them on our honeymoon. Water Aid’s mission means so much to us and when you’re in Glastonbury it’s like another world, you feel so happy.
‘We wouldn’t want to honeymoon anywhere else.’
Similarly, Jake added: ‘We always joked about meeting through toilets and WaterAid – I even mentioned toilets in our wedding speech.
‘We timed our wedding to coincide with Glastonbury. Volunteering at the loos there just feels a lot more adventurous than going to the Maldives or something.
‘People think we’re crazy and say it’s the most unusual honeymoon they’ve ever heard of – but it’s definitely not as bad as you’d think.’
The couple are required to do four six-hour shifts until Sunday and will get one day off.
The couple met while talking about WaterAid at a charity event (Picture: SWNS)
The young couple got officially got married last week (Picture: SWNS)
Whilst on shift they’ll be scrubbing the toilets with strong disinfectant and a mop, disinfecting the sinks, litter picking, and restocking hand sanitisers.
With more than 2,000 people heading to the festival this weekend, it’s safe to say the portaloos are not expected to be an entirely pretty sight. But Chelsea and Jake insist ‘it’s not as bad as people say’.
Chelsea said: ‘It’s actually really fun. You get to speak to loads of people because people are so intrigued and shocked at what you’re doing.
‘I’ve been to quite a few festivals and I can quite confidently say that Glastonbury has the cleanest ones.
‘As doctors we’re both passionate about health across the world. I’ve seen firsthand when I volunteered in Tanzania how difficult it is to get clean water and decent toilet facilities out there so I’m keen to speak to people about WaterAid.’
The charity works with different communities ‘to make clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene normal for everyone everywhere’.
Jake added: ‘We didn’t bother trying to get paid tickets because we both knew we’d rather do it with WaterAid.
‘It gives us a chance to get involved with the cause. We can attend the festival and have a great time whilst doing something that aligns with our values.
‘We get to stay in a campsite with other volunteers and have food provided on shift as well which is a bonus.’
When they’re not busy cleaning the toilets, the honeymooners are looking forward to seeing Elton John and enjoying their romantic honeymoon.
Chelsea said: ‘We like to be adventurous and do things a bit differently, the idea of a standard honeymoon didn’t quite fit our personalities. Given how we met, chatting about toilets and how important they are, it seemed like the perfect way for us to celebrate!
‘We even timed our wedding plans so we could be at Glastonbury the week after, and we specifically chose to volunteer with WaterAid as it felt more “us”.’
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‘We wouldn’t want to honeymoon anywhere else,’ they said.
