The Queen’s granddaughter Zara Phillips and England rugby star Mike Tindall will get married on Saturday. The couple will exchange their vows in an Edinburgh church surrounded by their families and friends. But their nuptials are being billed as a low-key affair – in stark contrast to the recent wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
Prince William and Kate’s televised marriage was watched by a world-wide audience of hundreds of millions and attended by a host of celebrities and dignitaries.
The doors of the Scottish capital’s Canongate Kirk, where Mr Tindall will first catch sight of his bride in her wedding gown, are to be closed to the press and public on Saturday afternoon. But large crowds are still expected in Edinburgh’s Old Town to watch the arrival of the royal family who are all expected to attend.
The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh will join Ms Zara’s parents the Princess Royal and Captain Mark Phillips at the Kirk.
Also believed to be attending are the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall, William and Kate, Prince Harry, the Duke of York and his daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie.
Mr Tindall is likely to have invited some of England’s best-known rugby players who are colleagues and friends.
He proposed to Ms Zara last December, having met her seven years previously. The couple have lived in their £800,000 regency townhouse in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, since 2009. The England rugby star, who has captained his country, staged his stag do in Miami while his fiancée – one of Britain’s leading equestrian competitors – held her hen party at a spa in Portugal.
His best man is fellow England player Ian Balshaw and Ms Zara’s maid of honour has not been announced but could be Autumn, the wife of her brother Peter, who was part of her hen party.
The wedding reception will be held in the Palace of Holyroodhouse – the official Scottish home of the Queen.
Speaking about organising her big day Ms Zara recently told The People newspaper: “My wedding preparations are going really well. It’s actually quite scary, but I’m enjoying it. I’m looking forward to becoming Mrs Tindall.”