Will & Kate: The Royal Wedding

Cinderella loses her glass slipper and runs home at the stroke of midnight. The prince finds her missing slipper and tracks her down, and the rest is history. (Or a fairytale, anyway.) Or so I’ve heard. But back to reality, on 29^th April 2011, the world bore witness to a dream come true for most girls – marrying a prince.
However, that girl isn’t me. No big despair though, Prince Harry is still available and a girl could always dream!

What I am rambling on about is the wedding of the century – The Royal Wedding of Prince William and Ms Catherine Middleton. To start off, with a $33 million price tag, the wedding was considered the most expensive security event in United Kingdom history. The luxurious cars, carriages, the beautiful Ely Cathedral, and the British Air Force flyover were merely the tip of the iceberg. Even the wedding cake of 8 tiers and 900 individually iced flowers took 5 weeks to complete.

There was much commotion going on about Ms Catherine’s dress. Will she have a train? Which designer will it be from? Will she take a risk or play it safe? No matter which designer dress she puts on, it will definitely leave an indelible mark in fashion history. To state the obvious, her choice will be compared to the late, Princess Diana’s. Nonetheless, in the end, she made a fantastic decision with the intricately designed gown by Sarah Burton of the Alexander McQueen fashion house. Kate looked absolutely flawless in it, looking like a princess. The dress had a 9 foot long train encrusted in handmade English lace created at the Royal School of Needlework at Hampton Court Palace. For the skirt, the gazar folds were meant to evoke the opening of a flower. Did you know that the embroiderers washed their hands every 30 minutes to keep the lace pristine? Even the needles were changed every three hours! To top it all off, she wore a Cartier halo tiara that was made in 1936 and given to the Queen by her mother. It is no wonder that upon seeing his beautiful bride for the first time, Prince William whispered to her, “You look beautiful.” Alexander McQueen would’ve been so proud.

The wedding dress of the century

Guests started arriving at 9a.m, and don’t forget the fact that Malaysians were following the UK time zone for the wedding. If you haven’t noticed, let me point out the Lady Gaga inspired hats. It is a traditional custom for the British to wear hats at weddings. The ladies were adorned with elaborate creations and fanciful headpieces known as fascinators. However, in the sea of haute couture hats, Princess Beatrice’s and Princess Eugenie’s stole the show. Nonetheless, fashion critics were rather ambivalent about their audacious choices. A few celebrity guests were also spotted, such as David Beckham, handsome as ever, his pregnant wife, Victoria Beckham, Elton John, Guy Ritchie, and Joss Stone.

After the speeches and the exchange of “I Will”, I was wondering why there was no, “you may kiss the bride”. That is, after all, the canonical romantic part that follows after having vowed yourself to your life partner. Nonetheless, it has been speculated that they saved that important fragment for the witness of British citizens at the famous balcony. It was as though they followed in the footsteps of Charles and Diana, possibly to keep memories of Princess Diana alive.

The wedding also bore a combination of tradition and modernisation. From the traditional aspect, the royal family members were directed to Buckingham Palace after the ceremony in carriages to have their family photo taken. Conversely, from the modern aspect, guests were transported by mini vans to Westminster Abbey. It was announced that such a move was intended for cutting costs so that taxes from overstretched British taxpayers would not be thoroughly drained.

You may now kiss the bride

Being relatively considerate in their time of lavish spending, it is no wonder that William and Kate are adored by the citizens. Most of the citizens have reported that they felt so touched just by witnessing the wedding because Prince William grew up in the public’s eye. Moreover, the citizens mourned with the then 15-year old Prince William when Princess Diana died in a tragic car accident. It was no surprise that a cheer demanding for a kiss erupted from the audience behind the gates of Buckingham Palace after Prince William and Kate made their appearance on the balcony. Roars of applause and chants of encore came from the audience after they witnessed the anticipated kiss that sealed the marriage. It is now happy ever after for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Maybe fairytales do exist after all.

BY FELICIA LOH