KATE MIDDLETON will travel to Westminster Abbey by car, but return to Buckingham Palace in a glass carriage following her wedding to Prince William on April 29th in a bid to ensure that the day does not appear too lavish, the British royal family said yesterday.
Details of the ceremony in the 1,000-year-old abbey, which is set to be one of the biggest global television events of the year, were released yesterday by Clarence House officials, far more in advance of the event than has happened with previous royal weddings.
The service will be conducted by the Dean of Westminster, the Very Rev John Hall; the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, will marry the couple while the Bishop of London, Right Rev Richard Chartres will give the address.
The bride, unlike Princess Diana in 1981, will travel to Westminster Abbey by car via The Mall, Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall and Parliament Square, but return with her new husband via the same route to the palace in a glass carriage.
So far, the guest list has been kept a closely guarded secret and no invitations have as yet been sent out for the event, which will end with a reception at the palace, followed by a private dinner and dancing.
Sky Television is bidding to make the event the first ever wedding to be shown on 3D high-definition, while other networks may follow as they seek to improve on the one billion audience that tuned in for the wedding of Prince Charles and Diana in 1981.
Royalists or not, the British public will enjoy a four-day bank holiday weekend in celebration of the union, while British tourism chiefs are to make it the centre-piece of a £100m global marketing campaign in coming weeks.
So far, Ms Middleton has kept silent on her choice of wedding dress, with bookmakers making designer Bruce Oldfield the favourite – though there is mounting speculation that she will, or has already chosen, a “young, little-known British designer”. Rumours, and there are many of them about, suggest that work may already be under way inside the palace.
Ms Middleton has already proven to be an influential figure in international fashion, following the flutters that were created by her decision to wear a white Reiss dress in the couple’s official engagement photographs.
Reiss, which was inundated with calls from women wanting “the simple belted number with a ruffle detail” within minutes of the photographs’ release is to launch the dress again in its Spring 2011 collection, since it was out of stock by the time she wore it publicly.
She had made a similar impact earlier when she wore a royal blue dress by Brazilian designer Daniella Helayel of Issa at the official announcement of the engagement, which prompted a series of imitations, including one from Tesco.
Her engagement ring – an oval 18-carat blue sapphire encircled by clear white diamonds previously worn by Diana – spurred TV shopping channels to conjure up a series of inexpensive knockoffs.
Conscious of the impact of spending cuts that will have been felt by the time the wedding takes place, St James’s Palace emphasised that the wedding would be paid for by Queen Elizabeth, the Prince of Wales and the Middleton family. The taxpayer will, however, pay for security.