About Margot Pemberton

Wedding dance choreographer

Over a decade preparing couples for their first dance · slow waltz, foxtrot, and small choreographed routines · based in the UK, writing for anyone planning a wedding floor anywhere.

I'm Margot Pemberton. I've spent the last fifteen years in studios with couples who were certain they couldn't dance — and watching them, six weeks later, glide through their first dance with the room watching. This site is the long version of what I tell them in their first lesson.

How I work

Most of my couples come to me four to eight weeks before the wedding, often after Googling "wedding dance lessons" in a small panic. I don't teach showpieces. I teach two minutes of dancing that the couple can hold without thinking on the night, in the actual shoes and the actual dress.

My approach has three rules. Pick a song you both already love, not a song that "should" be the first dance. Choose a style that suits the dress and the venue, not one you saw on Instagram. Rehearse in your real shoes from week one, because the wrong shoe is the single most common reason a polished rehearsal falls apart on the day.

What I write about here

Three short guides, written from years on the floor:

• First-Dance Songs. A working shortlist of songs that actually dance well, with timings and where to fade them.
• Wedding Dance Styles. What the slow waltz, foxtrot, swing, and choreographed routines really feel like — and how much rehearsal each one asks for.
• Your Dress & How You Move. The piece almost no other site covers honestly — how the fit, structure and silhouette of your gown rules in (or rules out) different dances.

What I believe about wedding dances

• Two minutes is a long time. A short, well-rehearsed dance always beats a long, ambitious one.
• The dance is for the two of you. Not for the camera, and not for the relatives. If you both genuinely enjoy it, the room will feel that.
• Most "embarrassing" first dances were chosen on someone else's advice. The honest sway to your favourite song is almost always the better choice.

If you've found something on this site useful, or something wrong, I'm always glad to hear from readers — it keeps the writing honest.