A Modern Love Story

A dashing prince weds a Hollywood princess – and nothing will ever be quite the same for the British royals

- Nici De Wet

WE KNEW it would be something rather different to the usual royal wedding – a ceremony that would reflect the fact that a healthy measure of modernity and diversity was being injected into a family who’ve long ruled over the British people.

After all, the bride was as far from the stiff-upper-lip aristocracy as can be, and her man didn’t bear the same weight of expectation as his big brother.

Nothing could’ve prepared us for the spectacle that unfolded under a dazzling blue sky in Windsor when Prince Harry married Meghan Markle.

A fiery American preacher who set the internet alight with his “love is power” sermon. A bride who did most of her walk down the aisle solo. A gospel choir giving a searing rendition of a soul classic. And a guest list that looked more like the who’s who of Hollywood than the nearest and dearest of the royal family.

There were traditional touches too, of course: choirboys and baritones delivering a goosebump-worthy performance of Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer (Princess Diana’s favourite hymn), an Anglican archbishop leading the service and enough pomp and pageantry to satisfy the most ardent royal fans.

There were also the wonderfully intimate moments between the bride and groom. The couple’s love for each other, evident in their hand-holding and lingering gazes, was plain to see throughout the ceremony.

But it was Meghan – at 36 three years older than the groom – who was mainly in control and tried to put a tense Harry at ease.

Lithe in a simple, elegant pearl-coloured Givenchy gown with train, her face hidden by a veil trailing five metres, she emerged from her chauffeured vintage Rolls-Royce Phantom IV and proceeded to make her way up St George’s Chapel’s West Steps on her own, with only her clutch of bridesmaids and pageboys, the little lads on hand to help hold her veil.