Half-tonne man gets married... after being taken to the church in a custom

The 43-year-old, ranked the heaviest man alive by the Guinness Book of Records, married his girlfriend of two years, Claudia Solis, from his reinforced bed.

'I am proof that you can find love in any circumstances. It's all a question of faith,' said Mr Uribe as he was wheeled out of his mother's house to the tow truck which took him to the Club de Leones in Monterrey, North Mexico.

Ten burly men provided the muscle to help his journey.

Mr Uribe wore a white collarless shirt with white sheets covering his lower body. He met his future wife four years ago when Claudia, 38, visited to tell him that her husband, a friend of Mr Uribe's, had died.

The ceremony drew parallels with that featured in the 2002 romantic comedy My Big Fat Greek Wedding, about an overweight bride.

The bed - which Uribe hasn't left in six years - was decorated with a canopy, flowers and gold-trimmed bows.

Two police patrol cars escorted him ahead of a long line of traffic.

Uribe tipped the scales in 2006 at 1,230 pounds (560 kilograms), earning him the world records title for the world's heaviest man.

He has since shed about 550 pounds (250 kilograms) with the help of Claudia, whom he met four years ago.

It took an hour to take Uribe to the ceremony 10 miles away with the efforts of over ten men with two tow-trucks - one a spare - and a police escort at hand. All the time Uribe waving to well-wishers and the many journalists and photographers present.

When he arrived at the wedding venue, Club de Leones, it took 20 minutes to lower the tow-truck's ramp over the hall's steps and then rotate his bed before pushing it through the venue's large front doors.

The bride was mobbed by more than 30 photographers when she arrived half an hour later in a black jeep.

She said: 'I'm not nervous. I'm just very happy. It's a very special day for us. We are marrying because we are in love.'

The couple met four years ago when Claudia, 38, visited to tell him that her then-husband, a school friend of Manuel's, had died - due to complications from being morbidly obese.

They grew closer due to their dedication to Christianity and eventually started a romantic relationship, including sex, they say.

After the wedding ceremony there was a huge banquet with three huge cakes - which the groom vowed not to eat, as he is still dieting, in the hope that he will shed enough weight that he can walk again.

The main dish was a chicken with vegetables. Uribe said: 'It is a heavyweight wedding, but low in calories.'

The whole thing was arranged in less than a month when the couple decided they could not wait to wed. Friends, local politicians and sponsors donated money to help pay.