‘Two-tier’ wedding for Pippa
Weddings used to be so simple. A church or registry office ceremony, followed by the obligatory staged photographs and then on to a hotel — or, if it was a particularly smart do, the bride’s parents’ country house — for a slapup meal and dancing into the wee hours. This would usually be quite enough of a headache for a bride to plan, but if you are the Duchess of Cambridge’s sister and party planning is in the family job description, then it is not enough to plan for one lavish wedding celebration. The thing to do is to have two in one day.
Never one to be behind a trend ( her sister may have married into the most traditional family in Britain, but Pippa is a thoroughly modern girl), Pippa Middleton has chosen to style the British wedding of the year in line with the growing trend for a “two- tier” celebration. Her marriage to James Matthews will be a day of two halves.
The first will be very much in keeping with the “relaxed country wedding” she is said to have always dreamed about, with the ceremony held at a tiny 12th- century church on the Englefield estate, west of London. This will be followed by a reception of champagne and exquisite canapés for the adults while the children will be offered healthy snacks. It is believed 20,000 canapés have been ordered, including scallops, haggis and smoked salmon, which will be enjoyed on the lawn in front of Englefield House ( the palatial mansion that is home to the estate’s owner MP Richard Benyon).
It will be during this morning reception that the father of the bride, Michael Middlet on, bridegroom James Matthews and his brother Spencer ( believed to be his best man) will give the traditional wedding speeches. The couple will also perform the ceremonial cutting of the cake. The guests will then be invited to return to wherever they are staying to freshen up and change into an entirely new outfit before the second event of the day.
Children will be whisked away, as the later event is strictly a no-kids affair.
For the second celebration — which is to be held at the Middletons’ manor house, guests will be welcomed into a world of high glamour and decadence. A glass palace has been erected in the garden, which is expected to be filled with candles and flowers. The provincial wedding of the morning will be cast aside for an extravagant black- tie event. Guests will sit down to a five-course meal with food sourced from the best British producers, before dancing into the early hours, when they will be revitalized with gourmet snacks.