Big sister Kate sorts out the kids as... Pippa shines in the sun
A beautiful bride, a dashing groom, celebrity guests and a busy Duchess Kate, but...
PIPPA MIDDLETON sealed her society wedding to James Matthews with a kiss as her pageboys and bridesmaids tried to steal the show.
The bride and groom shared a tender moment when they left the picturesque St Mark’s Church as the youngsters, including Prince George and Princess Charlotte, played around their feet. The wedding included a distinctly Scottish theme, with haggis canapes, Scottish lamb and a bagpiper.
The society nuptials of the year was witnessed by family, close friends and famous faces, including tennis star Roger Federer and wife Mirka, celebrity Donna Air, Princess Eugenie, the Duke and Du chess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.
However, missing from the congregation of the 12th century church in Englefield, Berkshire, was Harry’s US actress girlfriend Meghan Markle.
After the ceremony, Pippa and James walked hand-in-hand from the church and posed for the waiting press before sharing a lingering kiss at the lych gate as their married life began.
Ahead of them the tiny pageboys, dressed in gold-coloured britches and shirts, and bridesmaids in cream sash dresses had scattered confetti petals from baskets.
The bride, who looked tanned and toned, had managed to keep her wedding gown a secret until she arrived – a bespoke Giles Deacon wedding gown, crafted to create the impression of being seamless.
When she first arrived with proud father Michael in an open-topped vintage Jaguar, big sister Kate played a vital role and ensured her younger sibling looked her best for her big day.
She rearranged her train and other parts of her dress before she made her procession into St Mark’s, a reversal of Kate’s 2011 wedding to William, when Pippa was pictured fussing over her sister’s gown.
Kate, who wore a peach dress by Alexander McQueen and matching hat by Jane Taylor, acted as a much-needed chaperone for the bridesmaids and page boys, although her nanny Maria Teresa Turrion Borrallo, wearing her distinctive brown Norland uniform, was also at the service. The duchess arrived with the young group, who wore outfits by exclusive children’s clothing company Pepa & Co, and marshalled them back into the two luxury limousines that ferried them to the church.
As they drove away, future king George gave a wave to the small group of photographers and cameramen capturing the social event.
James’s father, David, a former mechanic who made a fortune through the car trade, owns a castle and 10,000-acre estate 15 miles from Loch Ness. His acquisition of the property in 2008 also bought him the courtesy title of the Laird of Glen Affric, which will be inherited by his eldest son, hedge fund boss James.
That would make Pippa Lady Glen Affric one day.
The wedding is rumoured to have cost Pippa’s parents Carole and Michael hundreds of thousands of pounds, with a glass marquee and posh portable toilets hired for the reception at their Bucklebury home.