European royalty has gathered on the Greek island of Spetses for the wedding of the second son of Greece’s former king Constantine being held today, organisers said.
Bluebloods from Denmark, Spain and Sweden will attend the marriage ceremony of 40-year-old former prince Nicholas to Tatiana Blatnik, a 29-year-old event planner for fashion designer Diane von Fürstenberg.
Constantine’s sister Queen Sophia of Spain will head the Spanish royal delegation to the Saronic Gulf island, though King Carlos will not attend.
The guest list includes Queen Margrethe and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, and Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden along with other members of their respective families.
Elton John is also reportedly among the guests and is expected to perform at the ceremony.
A cocktail was held at the Poseidonion Grace Hotel later yesterday ahead of the wedding ceremony that begins at 1630 GMT today, the organisers said.
Access to the island church of St Nicholas is tightly controlled but media will be allowed into a cordoned-off area in the outer courtyard.
“The couple’s wish is to celebrate their wedding with close family and friends in as much a discreet and calm way as possible,” Constantine’s office said in a statement.
Three hours away from the main Greek port of Piraeus, Spetses is one of Greece’s most picturesque islands. The use of cars is restricted on much of the island and most transport is limited to bicycles, mopeds, horse carriages and sea-taxis.
An Olympic sailing medalist in 1960 as crown prince, Constantine and the royal family fled Greece in 1967 after a failed counter-coup against military putschists that had seized power in the country.
Six years later, some 70 per cent of Greeks voted in a referendum to scrap the monarchy.
The former king has neither a Greek passport nor nationality but has returned to the country on several occasions, including for the 2004 Olympic games. As Greece is part of the European Union’s passport-free Schengen space he needs no passport coming from another Schengen state.