This Is What It's Really Like To Attend A Royal Wedding, According To A Guest

From ELLE UK

Many of us will recall watching the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton on television screens in April 2011, ogling the Duchess of Cambridge's beautiful Alexander McQueen gown and thoroughly enjoying our bank holiday.

For Duncan Larcombe, the day holds different memories because he was actually there.

As former royal editor of The Sun, he was one of six journalists who was invited to the 2011 nuptials in Westminster Abbey.

Amid the news that another royal engagement is imminent, as a result of Prince Harry's year-long romance with Suits star, actress Meghan Markle, we caught up with Larcombe to find out what really goes on behind-the-scenes at a royal wedding.

1) Believe it or not, it's not like any old wedding

'It's a very weird experience, kind of like sitting in Madame Tussauds with moving waxwork,' says the former royal editor. 'It was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. You know when you're there that you're watching history unfold in front of your eyes.

'It's not like any wedding I've ever been to. If you like people watching there's probably nothing better than a royal wedding. There isn't a room that has that many famous and royal people all under one roof.'

2) Royals get nervous too

'Before Kate arrived, William went to compose himself with Harry in a room just off Poet's Corner (an area in Westminster Abbey). We were sat near there so they both walked straight past us and William looked absolutely terrified. They came out afterwards and gave a deep breath.'

3) There's lots of secrecy around it

'We were told in advance about two or three weeks before that we were invited, but we were told not to tell anybody. They wouldn't have wanted word to get out amongst other journalists.'

4) The bride can silence a room of 1,000 people

'The whole of Westminster Abbey fell completely silent when Kate made her entrance.

'There was over 1,000 people sat there in absolute silence and all we could hear was the echoes of the crowds outside. In terms of the build up for the bride's arrival, they probably don't come much bigger than that.'

5) A lot of effort goes into the seating plan

'You have certain areas in Westminster Abbey that's all to do with royal protocol.

'Politicians all sit in one area, foreign royals are all sat in one area, the members of the royal family were all sat together in another.'

6) Famous people and non-famous people are treated the same

'One thing you can't do at a royal wedding is turn up after the Queen, as she will always be the second-to-last person to arrive after the bride.

'It was quite clear at the wedding that no matter if you were the Sultan of Brunei or a guy who's been at Sandhurst with William, or a big Hollywood star, everyone got there early. I think for someone like Sir Elton John, who is normally one to be the centre of attention, it was probably quite humbling.

'Everyone was sat in the same sort of seats. You can have one of the world's richest men sitting there in the same fold-out chair that Joe Bloggs was in, which was a nice touch.'

7) There's a fair bit of waiting around

'The wait for Kate's arrival felt like forever. We got there earlier than most people, in fairness, we were probably there for two hours before she arrived.

'The other guests were probably waiting for around an hour.'

8) Formality and tradition are everything

'William and Kate had a vast guest list thrust upon them by the foreign and commonwealth office to avoid any diplomatic issues with people being snubbed.

'When you boil it down, in terms of their actual friends, they probably only had a couple of hundred including work mates mixed in with 1,000 other people. You can't compare it to any other wedding.'

10) It's debatable how much of the day is about the couple

'William and Kate did look very happy. It was very obvious that while they had to go by protocol, absolutely everything they physically could have done to put their own stamp on the day, they did.

'I think the trees inside Westminster Abbey were Kate's touch. You could see the little touches that were important to the bride and groom on a day that really wasn't their's, it was everybody's. That's probably one of the things about royal weddings.'

11) Every royal wedding is different

'I would say that Harry's wedding would probably be very different from William's. William is the heir to the throne so it was a big national occasion, Harry will want to do everything he can to avoid that. William would have loved to avoid that but obviously he couldn't.

'Harry's will be really interesting to see where they choose and the scale of it. I'd be surprised if it's not televised, I think they'll have to do that compromise. It could be on a par with William and Kate's as a television event because Harry's popularity spans the globe.

'I hope I get invited to that one, that would be nice.'

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