With only one day to go for the anticipated Royal Wedding, preparations in London are in full swing and the festive atmosphere and enthusiasm are evident.
The president of the Friends of Malta GC, Herbert Magri-Overend, and his wife Veronica, married for half a century, do not see eye to eye on the forthcoming nuptials.
For Mr Magri-Overend, whose grandfathers were both Maltese but who has lived in the UK most of his life, the whole event is a lot of “rigmarole”. And he fears it will all be repeated soon when the Princess Royal’s daughter marries a rugby player.
“I am pleased for the couple. They are obviously in love and I hope they will have a happy marriage and lots of children. What I do not like is the constant bombardment in the media of what the bride will wear, her hairstyle, who has been invited and who hasn’t, all of which is sheer guesswork, only intended to fill the pages and TV screens.”
Mr Magri-Overend is mostly concerned about the fact that these weddings cost a fortune and “it is not the couple who foots the bill. I believe our taxes should not be used for the comfort of the privileged few,” he continues, insisting he is not a socialist and a “dinosaur”.
“We had to save hard to ensure our wedding day was a success. In fact, we couldn’t even afford a honeymoon,” he says in comparison to Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding that is estimated to cost millions.
But his wife, Veronica, firmly occupies the opposite end of the spectrum and will be glued to the TV tomorrow.
For her, the couple are just so down to earth – just like Prince William’s mother, Princess Diana. “I love them to bits!” She is also taken in by the perfection of the whole event. The Magri-Overends were childhood sweethearts. They met at a parish monthly dance. “I was under her spell from the moment I saw her, and she wouldn’t let go of my hand. It’s been the same since that first meeting.”
In fact, tomorrow, despite their differences, they will be watching the Royal Wedding together on TV, in Mr Magri-Overend’s case, out of want of something better to do.
The Magri-Overends still have strong ties with Malta. They are bringing over their two eldest great-grandsons in July and are looking forward to meeting their “special” Maltese cousins and the many friends made when “Herbie” holidayed with his grandparents at the Tigné Seafront in the 1950s.
But he remains patriotic to the UK. “One good thing about the Royal Wedding is all the Union Jacks that are being flown around the country.
“Normally, the county council forbids it on the grounds that it may inflame bad feelings from ethnic groups. So, on that score, three cheers for the Royal Wedding!”