PIPPA’S SPECIAL DAY
P IPPA 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 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 Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.
Also among the congregation of the 12th century church in Englefield, Berkshire, was Pippa’s controversial uncle Gary Goldsmith and Lady Gabriella Windsor, daughter of Prince and Princess Micheal of Kent, but missing 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.
When she first arrived with 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, acted as a chaperone for the bridesmaids and page boys. The duchess arrived with the young group, who wore outfits by children’s clothing company Pepa & Co, and marshalled them back into the two limousines that ferried them to the church. As they drove away, George gave a wave to the small group of photographers and cameramen capturing the social event.
The best man was the groom’s brother, former Made In Chelsea regular Spencer Matthews, who is dating Donna Air.
After the ceremony, the bride and groom led the way for their wedding guests to the nearby Englefield House, where a champagne reception was staged in its long gallery.
The wedding party included around 200 people who made their way up the slight hill to the house to enjoy champagne. The reception lasted two hours and the happy bride and groom were later spotted driving away in an E-type Jaguar to cheers from well-wishers.
With the Middleton family home just a few miles away in Bucklebury, the couple and their guests did not have far to travel for the evening reception.