A glorious day to remember

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 30/04/2011 (5382 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

LONDON — With not one but two kisses and tender whispered words, Prince William and Kate Middleton smiled and blushed Friday as they started their life as future king and queen. A day of seamless pageantry inspired hopes that this royal couple might live happily ever after.

They appeared at ease throughout their wedding day, with William fighting back giggles at times, while Kate’s smile lit up television screens, especially when her new husband leaned over to say, “You look beautiful.”

Their intimacy stood in sharp contrast to the lack of chemistry between a wooden Prince Charles and Diana Spencer 30 years ago when they began a marriage that ultimately collapsed in embarrassing tabloid headlines and turned many Britons against the monarchy.

A million people lined the procession route from Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace, many crying with joy. Cheers went up as the couple exchanged the traditional kiss on the balcony, followed by chants of “One more kiss!” The couple waved and smiled and, to a frenzy of delight, obliged.

An estimated two billion people tuned into the live broadcast in what may have been the most-viewed event in history.

The security operation was the largest since Charles and Diana’s 1981 wedding and the day went off without a hitch. Police dispersed scattered protests from anti-monarchists and anarchists and arrested 43 people for offences including drunkenness, breach of peace and theft, but the mood was overwhelmingly celebratory.

“Everybody’s happy, everybody’s united,” said 61-year-old Sabry Darwish, who was in the crowd watching the parade route. “Everybody is behind the bride and groom.”

Many praised the couple’s rare combination of humility, humour and grace. Kate was a commoner from a wealthy but middle-class family who actually worked for a living after university; William has long had his mother’s touch in connecting to the public and surprised fans who slept on the pavement overnight by personally thanking them Thursday for braving the cold.

The 28-year-old prince even displayed a quality almost never seen among royalty: humour. Surveying the 1,900 guests filling the abbey in their wedding finery, he turned to his father-in-law, Michael Middleton, and quipped: “We’re supposed to have just a small family affair.”

Then, after a reception at Buckingham Palace, he took his new wife for a spin, driving a dark-blue Aston Martin Volante festooned with ribbons, bows and balloons — and a licence plate that read “JU5T WED.”

It was the kind of display that made some wonder whether the couple just might bring the British monarchy back from the abyss.

“It’s a real turning point for the Royal Family,” Nicki Hookings, 47, said at one of thousands of street parties across Britain to celebrate the national holiday.

For much of the world, the wedding was a dramatic reaffirmation of 29-year-old Kate’s beguiling star power. Despite the pressure, she carried the day with an easy smile, youthful exuberance and a sense of decorum that matched the event. And when it was all over, she curtsied easily before Queen Elizabeth II, comfortably sharing the stage with the woman who has reigned since 1952.

Crowds from Australia to Zimbabwe clasped Union Jack flags and donned hats — and wedding gowns — to show their enthusiasm.

“It’s one happy event in the world right now,” said San Francisco attorney Laura Claster, who travelled to London to be with the crowds. “It gives us a day of celebration to forget the troubles in the world.”

The day was a visual feast for fashion enthusiasts. Guests wore extravagant hats, some costing more than $1,600, but all eyes were on the bride’s dress, the best-kept secret of the day.

The ivory-and-white satin gown, with its dramatic neckline, sheer lace sleeves and 2.4-metre train, was designed by Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen and reminded some of the wedding dress worn by a princess from another era, the late Grace Kelly of Monaco.

Kate wore her hair down and pulled back from her face, covered with a lace-edged veil and a diamond tiara on loan from the Queen. Her dramatic oak-leaf-shaped diamond earrings were a gift from her parents.

William, second-in-line to the throne after his father, wore the scarlet tunic of an Irish Guards officer, reinforcing his image as a dedicated military man. Maid of honour Pippa Middleton wore a simple column dress, while best man Prince Harry chose formal military attire.

The sighting of the wedding gown prompted swoons of admiration as Kate stepped out of a Rolls-Royce with her father at the abbey. Against all odds, at that moment the sun broke through the steely grey skies.

The long aisle leading to the altar was lined with maple and hornbeam trees as light streamed in through the high-arched windows. The soft green foliage framed the couple against a red carpet as they recited their vows flawlessly before Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams.

After a ceremonial drive around London in an open-topped horse-drawn carriage, the couple appeared with the Queen and their wedding party on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, where the highly anticipated first — and second — kisses brought screams of delight from the crowd.

Earlier in the day, the Queen had bestowed upon the couple their first royal wedding present: the titles of the duke and duchess of Cambridge.

The palace was holding two parties: one in the afternoon for 650 guests, and a dinner dance for 300 close friends.

Arriving for the latter, Kate pronounced it a “great day.”

 

— The Associated Press