WINDSOR, England (Reuters) – Hollywood stars joined Queen Elizabeth and her family for Britain’s second major royal wedding this year, as the monarch’s granddaughter Princess Eugenie married wine merchant Jack Brooksbank yesterday.
Eugenie, 28, daughter of the queen’s third child, Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, tied the knot with Brooksbank, 32, in a traditional ceremony at Windsor Castle’s 15th century St George’s Chapel.
It was the same setting as the lavish wedding in May of Prince Harry and his American actress wife Meghan. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, as the couple are now known, were among Friday’s congregation.
The 92-year-old queen and her husband Philip, 97, who has retired from official engagements, were joined by other royals and celebrities including Hollywood stars Liv Tyler and Demi Moore, models Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell and singers Ellie Goulding and Robbie Williams.
Female guests had to cling on to their hats as a blustery wind threatened their wedding outfits.
Eugenie’s dress, by Peter Pilotto and Christopher De Vos of London-based label Peter Pilotto, had a low back to reveal scars from surgery the princess underwent to correct scoliosis when she was 12.
“It’s a lovely way to honour the people who looked after me and a way of standing up for young people who also go through this,” she told ITV’s “This Morning” ahead of the wedding.
The couple showed clear signs of nerves but beamed happily during the hour-long service.
“This is meant to be a family wedding,” Eugenie’s father Andrew said earlier.
“There will be a few more people than most people have, there are a few more than Harry had, but that’s just the nature of Eugenie and Jack – they’ve got so many friends that they need a church of that size to fit them all in,” he told “This Morning” which broadcast the event live.
Several hundred singing and cheering well-wishers gathered outside in the shadow of the castle, far fewer than the tens of thousands that crammed into Windsor for Harry’s wedding.
Eugenie’s nuptials had much of the same pomp and pageantry as Harry’s, but the grandeur for a “minor royal” attracted some criticism.
Security around Windsor was tight, with airport-style checks and a heavy police presence. Eugenie does not carry out official royal duties and republicans said it is wrong that the estimated 2 million pound ($2.6 million) security bill will be paid by taxpayers.
