Pippa Middleton's wedding: Little Royals' get starring roles
The Duchess of Cambridge is said to be excited about her sister's wedding, but is a "bit worried" about her children's behaviour.
Saturday 20 May 2017 11:40, UK
Pippa Middleton will get married later, with as much international media attention on her Royal guests as the bride herself.
The sister of the Duchess of Cambridge and her groom James Matthews, a millionaire hedge fund manager, will get married at St Mark's Church on the private Englefield estate in Berkshire, with the reception held in the grounds of Pippa's parents' home on the outskirts of the village of Bucklebury.
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An enormous temporary glass marquee has been built on Michael and Carole Middleton's land to host the party guests at what has been dubbed the society wedding of the year.
While it's Pippa's big day it's likely that two little members of the Royal Family will steal the spotlight. Prince George, three, and Princess Charlotte, two, have starring roles as page boy and bridesmaid.
Their mother Kate admitted to a guest at a Buckingham palace garden party earlier in the week that she was a little apprehensive about how her children will behave.
After chatting to the Duchess on Tuesday, Andrew Bates said: "She said they were all really looking forward to her sister's wedding at the weekend, but she was a bit worried about how her children might behave.
"She said she was hopeful that they would be good - but you never know at that age."
Prince Harry will be in the congregation and there's speculation that his American actress girlfriend, Meghan Markle, may also attend. It would be their first big public engagement since they started dating last year.
It's not been confirmed how many guests have been invited but it's claimed the wedding has cost over £300,000.
Locals in Bucklebury have wished the couple well but there are no plans for village celebrations like there were for William and Kate's wedding in 2011.
Wynne Frankum, chair of Bucklebury parish council, told Sky News the Middletons had apologised for any disruption the wedding would cause.
She said: "The road past the Middletons' house is going to be closed and all the guests are parking at the village hall, which has been taken over I believe for three days, so there will be obviously restrictions.
"I think the Middletons have written a very nice letter to the people living around and about apologising for any inconvenience, which is very nice of them."
The occasion has been described by organisers and Kensington Palace as a private family wedding, but it was never going to be a low-key event with so many members of the Royal Family on the guest list.
TV cameras and photographers will be allowed to capture pictures of the bridal party arriving for the ceremony and leaving the church, but the rest of the event will be kept private and the couple have not sold the image rights to a magazine.