Am I as Common as Lauren Sánchez? If So, Where Does That Leave Me?

THE OBSERVER – OPINION AND IDEAS: The eyes of the world are on Lauren Sánchez and I know exactly how she feels

I’m feeling a keen sense of kinship with Lauren Sánchez – with her Louboutin heels and terracotta-hued tan, she’s clearly considered far too common to get wed in Venice.

By the time you read this, Sánchez should be hitched to the billionaire overlord of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, following three days of high-octane Italian nuptials, the details of which I’ve been gobbling up like forkfuls of piping-hot aubergine parmigiana.

The estimated £34m-£41m bill. The starry guests (Oprah, Leonardo, Ivanka, a sprinkling of Kardashians). Lauren’s reported 27 costume changes (A day? An hour?). Talk about a But there have also been protests: a banner in St Mark’s Square was emblazoned with a picture of Bezos and the words: “If you can rent Venice for your wedding, you can pay more tax.” At a time of global financial insecurity, perhaps parking 122-foot superyachts alongside 16th-century basilicas was never going to give optimal optics? » | Barbara Ellen | Columnist | Saturday, June 28, 2025

Billionaire’s Lavish Wedding! This Woman Cost Bezos $40 Billion... But What Shocked Everyone?

Jun 28, 2025 | The wedding of one of the richest men in the world, Jeff Bezos, instantly became the most talked-about event around the globe. The luxurious celebration in Venice is being compared to last year’s Ambani wedding: millions of dollars, hundreds of celebrities, and even royal guests. But behind all that glamour were protests, arguments, and waves of criticism.

Self-evidently, there was far more money there than there was taste! There was nary a well-dressed person in sight. Nor a well-coiffed person, either. This is proof that money can’t buy you style. – © Mark Alexander

Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez's Wedding underway in Venice | BBC News

Jun 28, 2025 | Reality stars, actors, royals and A-listers have travelled to Venice for the lavish wedding of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and TV presenter Lauren Sánchez.

Oprah Winfrey, Orlando Bloom, Kylie Jenner and Ivanka Trump were just some of the celebrities seen on the boats and streets of the Italian city on Thursday and Friday.

But the event has attracted protests from a variety of groups in Venice, including locals fighting over-tourism to climate change activists.

The festivities are expected to last three days, ending with a large party for the married couple and their hundreds of guests on Saturday.

Why Bezos' Opulent Wedding Is Fueling Anger over the Political Influence of the Ultra-rich | DW News

June 28, 2025 | Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has married Lauren Sánchez in a lavish ceremony in Venice estimated to have cost as much as 50 million US dollars. The billionaire tycoon wore black tie for the boat ride to the ceremony, with the actual venue a closely guarded secret. His bride wore an elegant cream Dior suit to get there, with a choice of designer dresses lined up for the exchange of vows. Dozens of A-list guests flew in for the occasion in a fleet of private jets.

The extravagance and opulence of the wedding also set off a string of protests in Venice. Bezos said he would donate more than a million to local charities. Critics of low taxation of the ultra-wealthy point to the dangers of rich billionaires such as Bezos shaping politics with their donations rather than making tax contributions.

To Whom Does Venice Belong? Bezos Wedding Draws Attention to Bucket List Destination • FRANCE 24

June 26, 2025 | Where else but the city of merchants, one whose fortune was founded on global trade, to host the celebrity wedding of the digital age's king of ecommerce? In Venice, Jeff Bezos, the billionaire owner of online trading platform Amazon, is tying the knot with journalist-turned-TV personality Lauren Sanchez in a spectacle that's drawn both paparazzi and protesters. What does this spectacle out of a Fellini movie say about the age we live in?

Bezos Wedding Venue Disruption 'a Symbolic Victory for People Power', Activist Group Says

June 25, 2025 | FRANCE 24's Sharon Gaffney speaks to the spokesperson for the "Everyone Hates Elon" activist group, which unfurled a giant banner reading "If you can rent Venice for your wedding, you can pay more tax" on Piazza San Marco, in protest at plans to shut down parts of the city for Jeff Bezos' celebrity wedding. He says the group "wanted to make a point that it's just obscene that any one person can do that at a time when most of us are struggling to pay the bills".

Jeff Bezos Changes Venice Wedding Venue amid Protests and Activist Stunt Threats | 10 News First

Jun 25, 2025 | Campaigners in Venice are claiming a win after Jeff Bezos was reportedly forced to change the venue for his wedding celebrations, as guests began arriving on Tuesday for the lavish three-day event.

The main reception for Bezos and his fiancée, former TV journalist Lauren Sánchez, was initially planned for the Scuola Grande della Misericordia, a grand 16th-century building in the heart of the city. But according to activist group No Space for Bezos, the couple backed down after protesters threatened to disrupt the event by filling the canals with inflatable crocodiles to block celebrity arrivals.

Greenpeace Italia and UK-based group Everyone Hates Elon also joined the demonstrations, unveiling a giant banner in St Mark’s Square on Monday featuring an image of Bezos laughing, alongside the message: “If you can rent Venice for your wedding, you can pay more tax.”


Related material here.

Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Arrive in Venice for Divisive Wedding

THE GUARDIAN: Nuptials of Amazon founder and former TV journalist to kick off on Thursday as activists continue to protest against event

The billionaire Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos, and the former TV journalist Lauren Sánchez have arrived in Venice as they prepare to tie the knot in a lavish three-day celebration that has divided the lagoon city.

Scores of celebrities and other members of the world’s super-rich will also join the pair in Italy, arriving on superyachts and private jets.

Bezos, the world’s fourth-richest person, was spotted by a Reuters reporter on Wednesday entering the exclusive Aman Venice hotel on the Grand Canal, where many of the celebrities will stay. His wife-to-be was also later sighted by photographers.

More than 90 private jets are expected to land in Venice before the celebrations officially begin on Thursday, bringing in guests for an event that some have called the “wedding of the century” and is rumoured to involve everything from pyjama parties to elegant dinners. » | Angela Giuffrida in Venice | Wednesday, June 25, 2025


Related video here.

Albert de Monaco et Charlene : Le mariage religieux
Ensemble des vidéos consacrées au mariage à Monaco du Prince Albert et de Charlene Wittstock. Événement du 02 juillet 2011. Commentaire de Stéphane Bern et Marie Drucker

Toutes les vidéos du mariage ici

Remember That Atrocious Hat Princess Beatrice Wore to The Royal Wedding? It’s Just Sold for $131,000 on eBay! At Least the Money Is Going to Good Causes
Money from Ebay bid for Princess Beatrice's bizarre headpiece will go to Children in Crisis and Unicef

Good Morning America: Sarah Ferguson on ‘Oprah,’ Speaks Out On Royal Wedding Snub

Related »

Royal Wedding: Sarah, Duchess of York Speaks of 'Difficult' Snub
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Sarah, Duchess of York has spoken publicly for the first time about being snubbed by the Royal Family over the guest list to the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.


The Duchess, who was a close friend of Prince William’s mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, told a US talk show that it had been “difficult” not to have been invited.

In an interview with Oprah Winfrey, she said that she had gone to Thailand while the wedding was taking place.

Her daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, attended the Westminster Abbey service with their father, the Duke of York.

The two princesses attracted lively discussion in fashion forums for their striking choice of hats by the designer Philip Treacy.

The Duchess, who is to have her own show on Winfrey’s cable channel, is understood to have turned down a slew of lucrative offers from US television channels to offer commentary on the day of the wedding. » | John Bingham | Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Royal Wedding: The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge Go on Honeymoon
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have gone on their honeymoon, 10 days after their Westminster Abbey wedding.

Their romantic break was confirmed by St James’s Palace.

On Monday, the couple were seen leaving their Anglesey home with large amounts of luggage[.]

One report claimed that they were heading for the Seychelles islands in the Indian Ocean.

Prince William and his new bride were expected to go on honeymoon on April 30, the day after their wedding attracted more than a million people to the streets of London. » | Caroline Gammell | Tuesday, May 10, 2011

£4,000 a Night Tropical Honeymoon in Seychelles for William, Kate
MAIL ONLINE: The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have left for a two-week honeymoon in a secret hideaway in the Indian Ocean.

The newlyweds will stay in an exclusive villa that costs £4,000-a-night and is located on one of the most beautiful and romantic islands in the world.

The Duke and Duchess are believed to have flown out by private jet yesterday before being taken by helicopter from the mainland to the tropical retreat.

William's car was apparently seen leaving Anglesey, north Wales, yesterday accompanied by a police Range Rover piled high with luggage.

A spokesman for St James's Palace said he would not confirm their honeymoon destination, although according to reports, the couple may have headed for the Seychelles. Wish you were heir! Prince William whisks Kate away on a £4,000-a-night tropical honeymoon 'in the Seychelles' » | Rebecca English | Tuesday, May 10, 2011

WIKI: Seychelles »

Lien en relation avec l’article »

Elisabeth II a un œil sur Pippa
La popularité de la sœur de Kate irriterait la reine
GALA.fr: Un peu plus d’une semaine après le mariage du prince William et de Kate Middleton, le public n’a d’yeux que pour Pippa, la sœur de la mariée. Une popularité qui aurait tendance, murmure-t-on outre-Manche, à agacer Elisabeth II...

Pippa vole la vedette à Kate, Pippa affole la toile, Pippa ceci, Pippa cela, Pippa, Pippa, Pippa… depuis une semaine, tout le monde ne parle que d’elle. Il n’est pas un jour sans qu’une nouvelle info sur la sœur de Kate Middleton ne vienne embraser le web ou qu’une nouvelle photo ne vienne alimenter les conversations. Comme si la star du mariage, c’était elle! » | Jean-Christian Hay | Lundi 09 Mai 2011

Kate et William : ils partent demain pour les Seychelles
PARIS MATCH: Dimanche, le Duc et la Duchesse de Cambridge devraient s'envoler pour une lune de miel qui ressemble fort à un retour aux sources de leur amour.

La nouvelle est tombée cet après-midi sur le site du Daily Mirror : le couple princier part demain aux Seychelles en voyage de noces. « Ils ne peuvent plus attendre de prendre du recul et d'évoquer ensemble les semaines incroyables qui viennent de s'écouler » confie au tabloïd un proche des jeunes mariés.

Depuis des semaines Kate et William ont parcouru virtuellement la moitié de la planète, au gré de l'imagination baladeuse de la presse britannique : Kenya, île Moustique, Amérique-du-Sud, Jordanie... Les destinations défilaient aussi vite que les stations du métro londonien. » | David Ramasseul, Parismatch.com | Samedi 07 Mai 2011

The Royal Wedding: How William and Kate Lit the Touch Paper for the New Era of the Monarchy
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: William and Kate are the new stars of the Royal family – and the public love them for their spontaneity, says Patrick Jephson

A week has passed in the new royal era. Prince William is back at his airbase. Kate is in the supermarket. The Queen is at Windsor Castle. The media circus has packed its satellite dishes and left town. The bunting has been recycled. Like a cartwheeling verger, we’ve watched the world turn upside down and then revolve right-way up again. Everything looks as it did before. But everything has changed.

These unremarkable days are actually momentous. Historians of tomorrow may look back on them as the point at which either the British Crown reinvented itself to prosper for another 100 years… or at which it gave one final hurrah before slipping into terminal irrelevance.

A touch melodramatic? Consider the options. On the one hand, with the wedding of the decade triumphantly behind us and the prospect of royal babies growing closer by the day, the monarchy is set fair. But on the other, by any realistic actuarial assessment, the next two candidates for the throne will be grandparents by the time they ascend it. That’s not in itself a bad thing – wisdom being one of the qualities most prized in a king – but in a country inexorably ageing, who could blame today’s teenagers for being disenchanted by a system that will never deliver a head of state for their generation. Continue reading and comment » | Patrick Jephson* | Saturday, May 07, 2011

*Patrick Jephson was equerry and private secretary to HRH the Princess of Wales 1988-96

Patrick Jephson »

Royal Wedding Mesmerised US: Obama
THE GUARDIAN: The glittering royal wedding of Prince William and new wife Kate left America mesmerised, President Barack Obama has told the Prince of Wales.

The US leader said many Americans watched the nuptials, which attracted an estimated worldwide television audience of two billion last week.

The comments came when the heir to the throne sat down for informal discussions in the famous Oval Office of the White House with Mr Obama.

The president described how he was impressed by William and Kate's handling of the pressure of the big day, and joked with Charles how he could not have coped with such a situation himself - he had just 300 guests at his wedding to Michelle.

Mr Obama and his wife were not present at the Westminster Abbey ceremony but his comments suggested he watched some of the event. » | Press Association | Thursday, May 05, 2011

Pippa, l'autre star du mariage de Kate Middleton et William
VOILA.fr: Dans le sillage du fastueux mariage de Kate Middleton avec le prince William, une femme a polarisé l'attention : Pippa Middleton. La ravissante demoiselle d'honneur a presque volé la vedette à sa soeur, le jour de ses noces princières. 



En portant la traîne de son aînée devant l'abbbaye de Westminster le vendredi 29 avril, Pippa a conquis le Royaume Uni et bien plus. Elle est devenue en peu de temps une véritable star du web. Sculpturale dans sa robe fourreau ivoire, signée Sarah Bruton [sic] pour Alexander Mc Queen, la jeune femme de 27 ans a fait l'unanimité avec cette tenue qui épousait parfaitement ses formes. Continuez à lire et ajouter un commentaire » | Mercredi 04 Mai 2011

Prinzenhochzeit: „Ich hoffe, wir haben ihren Geschmack getroffen“
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE: Nach der Trauung gab es bei der Königin köstliche Häppchen, aber keinen Pimm's: Hochzeitsgast Philipp Fürst zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg, der Großneffe der Queen, erzählt, was die Fernsehkameras nicht filmten.

Philipp Fürst zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg, wie begann für Sie der große Tag?

Ganz entspannt. Wir haben uns ins Taxi gesetzt und sind ganz früh in der Westminster Abbey gewesen. Die Stadt war erstaunlich leer, zumindest die Straßen, auf denen wir gefahren sind.

Dann gab es aber bestimmt strenge Sicherheitsvorkehrungen?

Es gab schon Schleusen und einen Metalldetektor. Und es war auch ein bisschen wie am Flughafen. Wir wurden kontrolliert, nachdem wir unsere Zulassungskarte vorgezeigt hatten. Die Karten hatten unterschiedliche Farben, je nachdem, wo man saß. Unsere Karte war orange. Aber weil wir so früh da waren, ging das alles ganz schnell.

Saßen Sie mit der Königsfamilie zusammen hinter der Chorschranke und damit nahe am Altar?

Ja. Wir hatten ganz wunderbare Plätze. Meine Frau und ich saßen direkt hinter der königlichen Familie - vielleicht neun Meter vom Altar entfernt. William und sein Trauzeuge Harry waren ja auch schon früh in der Kirche und sind zweimal direkt an uns vorbeigelaufen in die Sakristei. » | F.A.S. | Die Fragen stellte Peter-Philipp Schmitt | Dienstag, 03. Mai 2011

FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE: Philipp Fürst zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg: Der Hochzeitsgast von der Jagst – Philipp Fürst zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg ist zur Prinzenhochzeit geladen - als einer von wenigen Deutschen. Der Grund: Einer seiner Vorfahren war mit einer der Schwestern von Philip Mountbatten verheiratet, dem Großvater des Bräutigams. » | Von Peter-Philipp Schmitt, Langenburg | Donnerstag, 28. April 2011

WIKI: Philipp zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg »

WIKI: Hohenlohe (Adelsgeschlecht) »

WIKI: Philipp, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg »

WIKI – Français: Philipp zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg »

WIKI: Langenburg »

WIKI: Schloss Langenburg »

The Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton
Complete coverage of the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton