The Royal Wedding of William and Kate - And What Came After

[Marina]

Oh, I wouldn't have missed it.   I wasn't sure whether or not I was going to watch until this morning, because it's so bittersweet after Diana.   Wills looks so much like her, and Charles.    (I must sound like his grandma or something, lol!)

I loved Kate's dress, loved how it was so classic, and I thought Pippa looked gorgeous.   I think both royal sons are handsome, but there's something about the mischief in Prince Harry's eyes and slightly unruly hair that is very charming.  

Becks looked really handsome too.

[Aloysius J. Gleek]

[Jeff Wrangler]

I liked William's amusement as he whispered to his father-in-law

"We wanted a small family affair" in the middle of Westminster cathedral.  

The abbey is not a cathedral. Cathedral is a technical term, the "seat" of the bishop of a diocese. The cathedral, or seat for the bishop of London, is St. Paul's.

Sadly I was not impressed with Kate or her sister's attire.  The wedding gown was staid and dowdy, like something from the 50's rather than the 21st century.  Granted the woman is not a spring chicken anymore, pushing 30, but she could have gone with something a bit more youthful.  A Royal family fan friend of mine theorized that Kate realized Diana had gone over the top with her dress and knew she couldn't overstate the overstated without looking costume-y, so she didn't try.  So she went with safe and it was boring.  Pippa looked very nice, but her dress was more like an evening gown, not something suitable for a morning wedding.

Well, one woman's "staid and dowdy" is another man's tasteful, elegant, and understated. 

I agree with you about Pippa's dress, more or less. Lovely evening gown, but I would say--as I've said already--too "clingy" (body-hugging) for a church wedding at any time of day.

Beckham was gorgeous, properly attired in - what do they call them?  Morning suits?  - and yes, the medal is real.  He was awarded the Order of the British Empire.  He was apparently wearing it on the wrong lapel - the Brits obviously keep up with this sort of minutiae - but it's real.

Thanks! Didn't know Becks had an OBE. I do believe it is a morning suit.

But I still think it makes him look like a refugee from a road company of My Fair Lady. That thing on Victoria's head, whatever you call it, makes her look like a Yeshiva boy.

[delalluvia]

The abbey is not a cathedral. Cathedral is a technical term, the "seat" of the bishop of a diocese. The cathedral, or seat for the bishop of London, is St. Paul's.

Interesting...but that's what they call it.  Westminster Seat doesn't have the same ring to it. 

Well, one woman's "staid and dowdy" is another man's tasteful, elegant, and understated. 

Yep. 

Thanks! Didn't know Becks had an OBE. I do believe it is a morning suit.

But I still think it makes him look like a refugee from a road company of My Fair Lady. That thing on Victoria's head, whatever you call it, makes her look like a Yeshiva boy.

I LOVE those suits.   My Fair Lady?  That's actually the period these suits are from.  They don't change much.  I didn't know about the OBE either until it was explained.  As for Victoria...well, yeah, she could have chosen something better for a hat.

[Aloysius J. Gleek]

Much  nicer--I approve!

http://nymag.com/daily/fashion/2011/04/kate_middleton_is_now_wearing.html


Kate Middleton Is Now Wearing
Another
Alexander McQueen Dress for Dinner
at Buckingham Palace
By: Charlotte Cowles
4/29/11 at 5:15 PM


Photo: John Stillwell - WPA Pool/Getty Images

Kate Middleton (now officially Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge) changed into another dress by McQueen's Sarah Burton for the post-wedding evening party at Buckingham Palace. Dress No. 2 is strapless, made of plain satin gazar, and nipped at the waist with a diamante embroidered band. Perhaps chilly, Kate's also wearing a white angora bolero cardigan, which looks poised to shed white fluff all over William's crisp black tux.

Hosted by Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, the party includes 300 guests and reportedly has an informal "disco" theme. A highlight of the evening will undoubtedly be Prince Harry 's toast to the couple, which is expected to be scandalous (and hopefully booze-fueled). The couple will spend their first night together as newlyweds in the palace. The Queen, meanwhile, has departed for a private weekend at an undisclosed location so that the youngsters can be as rowdy as they please.

[delalluvia]

*sigh*

Got me all excited there for a second.  Still a plain, staid dress, with a fuzzy blankie around her shoulders that's going to shed all over her hair and anything woolen around her.  NOW is the time she should have worn something like Pippa did. 

[Aloysius J. Gleek]

I liked William's amusement as he whispered to his father-in-law
"We wanted a small family affair" in the middle of Westminster cathedral.  

The abbey is not a cathedral. Cathedral is a technical term, the "seat" of the bishop of a diocese. The cathedral, or seat for the bishop of London, is St. Paul's.

Believe it or not, there is most definitely  a Westminster Cathedral--it just isn't the Abbey.  In quite a few large British cities, there are TWO  cathedrals--one C. of E., and, as you can probably guess, R.C.; and this one is the biggest (and in this case, the ugliest):




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westminster_Cathedral


Westminster Cathedral
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia




Westminster Cathedral in London is the mother church of the Catholic community in England and Wales and the Metropolitan Church and Cathedral of the Archbishop of Westminster. It is dedicated to the "Most Precious Blood of Jesus Christ" (the Eucharist).

The cathedral is located in Victoria, SW1, in the City of Westminster. It is the largest Catholic church in England and Wales, and should not be confused with Westminster Abbey of the Church of England. Westminster Cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of Westminster, currently Archbishop Vincent Nichols. As a matter of custom, each newly appointed Archbishop of Westminster has eventually been created a cardinal in consistory.


(....)


The cathedral opened in 1903, a little after [architect John Francis] Bentley's death. For reasons of economy the decoration of the interior had hardly been started and still much remained to be completed. It is often presumed that Westminster Cathedral was the first Catholic place of worship to be built in England after the English Reformation; however that honour belongs to St Patrick's in Soho Square built in 1792. Britain's first Catholic churches built after the Reformation are both in Banffshire, Scotland. They are St. Ninian's, Tynet, built in 1755 and its near neighbour, St. Gregory's, Preshome, built in 1788. Both churches are still in use.

Under the laws of the Catholic Church at the time, no place of worship could be consecrated unless free from debt and having its fabric completed, so the consecration ceremony did not take place until June 28, 1910.

In 1977, as part of her Silver Jubilee Celebrations, the cathedral was visited by Her Majesty The Queen. Although there was no religious service (the visit was to a flower show) it was highly symbolic as the first visit of a reigning monarch of the United Kingdom to a Catholic church in the UK since the Reformation.

and etc.

[Aloysius J. Gleek]

O.
My.
Gawd.

[Aloysius J. Gleek]

Earl Spencer looks terrible--
and he is ten years younger
than me!! 

But--
look at his 17 year-old son
(The Honourable Louis Frederick John Spencer,
Viscount Althorp) -- woah. Two of his
daughters, twins, are not bad looking either!

[Aloysius J. Gleek]

Just because we can't let it go--
(who had to sit immediately behind
Beatrice? How annoying was that?! )