On September 9th, 2021 (Happy Birthday, Uncle Pat!!), we met in the most romantic of circumstances: at work in the Lyst offices in the City of London. Callum was doing a new starter introduction at an All Hands, having joined the company on Monday that week. Callum’s introduction mentioned his love for football and traveling, which prompted Lara to turn to a friend and say: “we need to go befriend this guy at drinks later”.

Throughout the next year, we got to know each other in a work capacity as Callum became Lara’s manager in January of 2022 when she moved over to the Analytics team. Throughout 2022, we managed to hide a budding relationship from the rest of the company (well kinda, it wasn’t as sly as we thought) while balancing date nights and 1-1s.

Quickly becoming inseparable, we decided to move in together in 2023. Our flat in Costa del Wandsworth is still where we live today. In this time, we have been LOVING the DINK lifestyle, enjoying all of London's incredible people, restaurants, pubs, and more, hosting our friends, and traveling to the US and Europe loads.

On one of these lovely trips to Ireland, on July 11th, 2025, Callum proposed to Lara. He decided the perfect place to ask Lara to be a McCarthy was in Tipperary in the Irish countryside, as this is where his paternal grandfather’s story (and the McCarthy name) originated. With rosé in hand, Callum got down on one knee in Lara’s best friend Emily’s in-laws' back garden before we headed off to celebrate at the pub… named McCarthy’s!!!!

Later that year, in November of 2025, when visiting the US for our engagement party at Leggetts and Cate and Mike’s wedding, we very suddenly (and excitedly) decided to elope in New York City on the same visit. Somehow, someway, we managed to find a cancellation for both appointments required for marriage, so on Friday November 14th, we picked up their marriage license in Manhattan and on Thursday November 20th, we got married in.............. Staten Island, New York.

Obviously though, there is always room for a bigger occasion. Lara has had the most amazing time planning this wedding, always maintaining that this is her only excuse to get everyone she loves, from across the world, in one room. As for Callum, he’s had a great time visiting Provence and eating good food, while having Lara kept busy at home. We cannot wait to celebrate this next chapter of our story with all of our family and friends, as that is what will really make it feel official.