Are we still in love with August bank holiday weddings?

The August bank holiday is always popular for last minute getaways, festivals or trips to the beach.

It has also traditionally been one of the busiest times of the year for weddings, with the combination of warm weather and a long weekend making it the first choice for many couples looking to tie the knot.

But as trends and weather patterns change, are West Midlands brides and grooms turning away from the popular date?

Kelly Walker from Stockton in Warwickshire is due to marry her long-term partner Pete Jones over the weekend.

They first got together when they were 15 and 16 years old. After breaking up when they were young, they got back together in 2012.

Walker said they had talked about getting married for years and had finally booked a do at Skylark Country Venue, near Daventry in Northamptonshire.

"I'd have got married any time," she said, but explained they had gone for the bank holiday because it fitted around their families' summer holiday commitments.

Having a wedding at this time of year allowed them to make use of the venue's outdoor space, she said.

She added "the vibe we wanted was relaxed", with street food instead of a sit-down meal and a party into the evening.

BBC Sport journalist Ged Scott had hoped for a bit of sunshine when he got married on the Summer Bank Holiday 24 years ago.

He remembers 120 people packing into Trimpley church in Worcestershire, followed by a wedding reception at Worcester's New Road cricket ground.

He said his was wife Helen was "simply a born organiser", adding: "She wanted the reception to be in the marquee at New Road up by the famous pear trees as it was just such a lovely setting."

Scott said they had chosen the date because they wanted to make "more of a weekend of it" and because it did not clash with family commitments or Worcestershire playing at home.

But in typical British bank holiday style, the weather was unpredictable.

The morning of the wedding had seen some light rain, but it later became "very muggy". By the time they held a small party at their home on the Sunday, it was baking hot.

Scott said: "Running out of ice cream in the freezer when the hordes descended on us on that hot Sunday afternoon was also an unbelievable sight."

Sonia Bhayani from The National Wedding Show said although the Summer Bank Holiday weekend was still "extremely popular", fewer couples were choosing to marry in August compared with a decade ago.

People still needed to book venues for the month early, she said, especially if they were looking in sought-after areas such as Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire or Cambridgeshire.

Sending out "save the date" cards well in advance was a good idea too, she suggested, because guests often went on holiday.

Then there was the issue of cost. "Many venues price bank holiday dates in line with their most sought-after Saturdays," Bhayani warned.

The National Wedding Show returns to Birmingham's NEC in October and Bhayani said a lot had changed during the four decades it had been running.

While the August bank holiday remained the "golden weekend," she said people were increasingly looking at other times of the year.

Recent heatwaves had also caused headaches and she said: "I've spoken to a few venues which had to move indoors because it's too uncomfortable".

Vicki Harris, the weddings and events manager at the Fox Inn in south Staffordshire, said she had also seen some climate-related changes.

She said August bank holiday was still the venue's busiest weekend of the year and the month was always their first to get booked up.

Weather-permitting, summer weddings meant "having the outside space and being able to do more", she explained.

However, the heatwaves of the last two years have had an impact on bookings.

Harris said: "With all the very, very hot weather, we've been having people saying they are preferring September.

"I think that's because this extreme weather can ruin a wedding more than rain."

As a result, she believes more venues will start looking at measures such as air conditioning, and the traditional summer peak wedding season could change.

Gary Homewood runs Glewstone Court in Herefordshire and said two or three-day celebrations had become popular, meaning the bank holiday weekend remained an ideal time for a wedding.

It allowed people to give their guests "a mini holiday", he said, especially if some were travelling long distances to be there and it was an ice-breaker for people to get together before the big day.

He disagreed that people were falling out of love with August weddings.

"We're not seeing that at all," he said. "All the weekends through the summer are some of the first to go. People are recognising where the sunshine is."

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