Royal Wedding: Prince Nikolaos of Greece and Tatiana Blatnik

Groom: Prince Nikolaos of Greece and Denmark
Bride:  Tatiana Blatnik
Date:   August 25, 2010
Where:  The Cathedral of Ayios Nikolaos, Spetses, Greece
Guests:  380, including Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway, Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia of Asturias, Prince Phillipe and Princess Mathilde of Belgium, Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent.
Wedding Gown: Angel Sanchezwith a chantilly lace overlay, teamed with a matching bolero and full-length veil. Made from 40 metres of French Chantilly lace, the strapless dress featured a moulded bodice that showed off her slender waist, before falling to her feet and finishing in a sweeping train. Completing the regal yet feminine look was a pair of diamond drop earrings and the antique corsage tiara, lent by her new mother-in-law (Tatiana's sister-in-law Princess Pavlos wore the same tiara at her wedding in 1995).
Engagement: December 2009, proposed in Greece on a boat.
His parents: King Constantine and Queen Anne Marie of Greece and Denmark
Her parents: Ladislao Blatnik (deceased) and Blanche Bierlain, stepfather Attilio Brillembourg
Engagement Ring:  stunning engagement ring, topped with a sapphire that was given to Nikolaos by his mother, who received it from her own parents, King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid of Denmark.

The wedding of HRH Prince Nikolaos of Greece and Denmark to Tatiana Blatnik was an international affair with guests coming to the island from all over the world. It was the first royal wedding to be held in Greece since the Prince's parents were married in the 1960's, and would have been all most impossible 15 years ago.  It wasn't until 1992 that the family was actually allowed to travel in Greece freely.  Prince Nikolaos was born in Rome after the family was forced into exile and never set foot in Greece until 1981 when the family were allowed to return for his grandmother's funeral. Despite being brought up in England, Prince Nikolaos and his brothers and sisters grew up speaking Greek as well as English and Spanish (King Constantine's sister Sophia is married to King Juan Carlos of Spain). He went to Brown University where he studied International Relations, and Sandhurst Military College (alma mater of Princes William and Harry).  Tall, and good-looking with slicked back dark hair, and an English accent tinged with Greek, he was one of the most sought after bachelors in the world.

His 29 year old bride, Tatiana Blatnik was born in Venezuela to a Slovenian father and a German mother, and grew up in Switzerland. There was a rumor going around on the Internet that she was related to an American politician but that has proved to be false. Gorgeous, standing almost 6ft tall, the blonde beauty met her future husband in Gstaad at a club. It turned out that he was friends with her older brother Boris, but didn't recognize her since hadn't see her since she was a child. According to the March issue of Vanity Fair Espana, he turned to Boris and siad "How are you letting of that girl, who is the fairest of all?" to which Boris replied, "Dude, that's my sister," (or something like that!).

Tatiana was 20 at the time and studying sociology at Georgetown, but the Prince persisted with flowers, calls, invitations. The Prince was living in London and it was almost two years before the two finally started dating. "His background is quite traditional and courted me like old times. It took more than a year to decide but from 2003 to our wedding we were never seperated by more than 10 days.)  When they first started dating, the Prince was living in London at The Blake Hotel. The new Princess loves joking, cooking and hiking and is described by friends as 'funny, modest, and can be really clueless." Apparently she once sat next to Prince Andrew at a dinner and had no idea who he was!

The Prince was determined to have the wedding in Greece, although Tatiana apparently had Dr. Zhivago fantasies of horse drawn sleds. Greek to the core, the Prince got his wish.  The happy couple gleefully mixed royalty with their commoner friends at the reception. Despite her new title of HRH*, Tatiana says "I do not feel like a Princess. I feel like I have married a Prince with a title. Well, actually yes, he is my prince, but nothing more." The Princess, who worked as an event planner for Diane von Furstenberg before the wedding, has continued as a consultant for the brand while the Prince works for his father and brother.

Sources:  Hello Magazine, Vanity Fair (Espana)

* Although Greece now longer has a monarchy, the Greek royal family are also Princes of Denmark due to the fact that the brother of Queen Alexandra (born Alexandra of Denmark) of England was offered the throne of Greece. Prince Philip is also related to both the Greek and Danish royal houses.

The Other Royal Wedding: Zara Phillips and Mike Tindall

With so much attention focused on the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton, it’s easy to forget that the Queen has another grandchild who is getting married this summer. Perhaps that is on purpose given the low key lifestyle of Zara Phillips and her fiancé, Mike Tindall. As royal watchers know, William is not the first of the Queen’s grandchildren to get married. Peter Phillips married first almost three years ago when he married Canadian Autumn Kelly. Now this summer it will be his sister’s turn. While Peter married at Windsor Castle, Zara surprised many by choosing Edinburgh for her wedding instead of more expected sites like her home county of Gloucestershire or Hampton Court where Lord Frederick Windsor was married.

The happy couple, who were introduced by Prince Harry in a bar in 2003 during the Rugby World Cup in Sydney, has been dating for seven years. They were first spotted at the swank Met Bar in London, although they just claimed to be friends, and then on a date at the Badminton Horse Trials before making their relationship public. Before meeting the 6’2” 224 plays outside centre for Gloucester Rugby who she calls a ‘gentle giant,’ Zara had been involved in a tempestuous four year relationship with jockey Richard Johnson. Since meeting Tindall, the pair have settled down first on a rent free cottage on her mother’s Gatcombe estate but moved into a £800,000 three-story Georgian house in April 2009.

At first glance, Tindall seems like an unlikely choice for a royal son-in-law. Tindall is from Leeds in Yorkshire, he served fish and chips from a van while at school. He also has 2 criminal convictions for drunk driving, the second led to him losing his license for three years and paying a fine of £500. Tindall, 32, has claimed that it was his "pure charm" that won her heart. Princess Anne has been adamant since her children’s birth that they are not royal; they just happen to have a Queen for a grandmother. They get no money from the civil list and have no royal duties. Considered a bit of a wild child, Zara famously pierced her tongue, and is known for her short skirts and fab tastes in hats. .Although 12th in line for the throne, Zara is more concerned with making the Olympic team in 2012.

It was sport that brought them together. They seem to have appreciation for the trials and tribulations of their chosen sports. Tindall is often seen at Zara’s events, and she is a regular at his rugby matches. Zara is one of Britain's top equestrians and a former world three-day Eventing champion. Her fiancé, who plays for club side Gloucester, has been capped more than 60 times by his country and was part of the England team that won the 2003 Rugby World Cup. Speaking to HELLO! Magazine last year, Mike, said "I don’t think it’s about whether we will get married but when. There's no doubt that I love Zara but it has to be the right time…And yes it probably will be a white wedding, although sometimes I can see the attraction of sneaking away without telling anyone." Reflecting on their relationship, "I just really liked her. It wasn't love at first sight - I wasn't looking for romance. But, naturally, I wasn't unmoved by her. She is a stunning woman. There was something there."

According to the Daily Mail, Zara said back in 2008, “I’m old-fashioned. I think they should ask you. Everyone at the rugby club seems to be getting married and having babies so they keeping asking me, ‘What about you?”

Zara and Mike have decided to get married in Scotland this summer on July 30th. This won’t be the first royal wedding north of the border. Princess Anne had her second wedding to now Vice-Admiral Timothy Laurence in 1992 at a church near Balmoral. That decision had more to do with The Church of Scotland allowing divorced people to remarry in the church, while the Church of England does not.  Sources say Zara and Mike are under pressure not to follow in her brother’s footsteps by selling the rights to the wedding to a tabloid like Hello!

Marrying in Scotland is in keeping with the couple’s low key approach. While Kate and William had a formal press conference to announce their engagement, Zara and Mike wore jeans and winter coats for their informal announcement in December. The church, Canongate Kirk, is where the Queen worships when she is in town. Palace sources day that the wedding will be a private affair with the costs covered by the families. It has been announced that It has also emerged that Tindall's best man will be fellow rugby player Iain Balshaw, who was part of England's rugby World Cup-winning squad. The wedding reception will be held at The Palace of Holyroodhouse, the Queen’s official residence in Scotland (which she rarely uses). It is also the palace where Mary Queen of Scot’s private secretary David Rizzio was famously murdered.

The busy couple has postponed plans for a honeymoon due to their careers and might even put it off until next year. Tindall has confirmed he intends to play rugby for England just a week after the couple get married, meaning he has to be back in training two days after the ceremony. Zara, meanwhile, will compete at the Festival of British Eventing at Gatcombe Park, the same weekend.

I Love A Royal Wedding!

Almost a month ago, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent's eldest child, Lord Frederick Windsor married his fiancee Sophie Winkelman at Hampton Court Palace.

Lord Frederick is 31st in line for the throne (which means the chances of his being King are basically none). Still he had to ask permission from the Queen to get married according to The Royal Marriage Act of 1772. His father had to give up his place in the line of succession for marrying a Catholic, however Freddy was raised Anglican.

The couple apparently turned down a "life-changing" sum of money from a celebrity magazine to cover the wedding. Seriously, we're talking like over $1M but instead they chose to keep it private for their 400 guests. Frankly I would have taken the money since the wedding was on the cover of HELLO! magazine anyway.

The bride, Sophie Winkelman, is an actress who played Princess Eleanor in the short-lived series The Palace. She also appeared inas Big Suze, in the Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show. She's also a graduate of Cambridge University where she read English at Trinity Hall. She also played the older Susan in the film The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.

While the Duke of York's daughter Princess Eugenie was a guest, none of the senior members of the royal family were in attendance. Not the Queen, the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall, or William and Harry. Kind of surprising since Prince Michael is the Queen's first cousin. However, the groom's uncle the Duke of Kent and his Duchess were there along with their children. The bride has met the Queen and other members of the family, and has gotten used to appearing at public functions involving the Royal Family.

Unfortunately, apart from their wedding venue, there are no royal palaces in the couple's future. The groom's parents now have to pay over 120,000 pounds a year for their apartment in Kensington Palace (it used to be something like 10 pds a week) and they've sold their country estate Nether Lypiatt. Princess Michael has long been a controversial member of the Royal Family. She's been accused of plagiarism, and adultery, and she's prone to sticking her rather large feet in her mouth at any given moment. You can read more about Mommy Dearest here at Scandalous Women.

Had his great-grandfather, George V, not revised Royal styles and titles in 1917, Lord Frederick would have been born HH Prince Frederick of Kent. He was educated at Eton College, and Magdalen College, Oxford, where he gained a 2:1 in classics. He has also modeled in a campaign for Burberry; he has also modeled for Tomasz Starzewski. A sometime music journalist (notably for Tatler magazine), he planned to become a solicitor working in entertainment law.

The groom has certainly straightened himself out from the guy who admitted doing drugs. In 1999, Lord Frederick admitted experimenting with cocaine. "I admit it is true," he said. "It is very difficult to avoid getting into this sort of thing when you move in these circles, but I don't blame anyone else for the incident.". He now works for JP Morgan, has been transferred to the LA office since his wife has a role on a NBC mid-season replacement series. No doubt they will hang out with the British colony in LA which consists of Lord Alexander Rufus-Isaacs, and the Duke of Manchester. You can read more about the wedding here. The bride's new name is Lady Frederick Windsor, but for acting she will still go by Sophie Winkelman.

Royal Weddings Week

Tis the season for weddings and this week there are not one, but two Royal Weddings. The last time this occurred was about four years ago when Prince Frederik of Denmark married Mary Donaldson and his first cousin Prince Felipe of Spain married his bride Letizia.

Last Saturday was the first wedding for one of the Queen's grandchildren. Her grandson Peter Phillips (son of Princess Anne) married Autumn Kelly, a lovely Canadian that he met at the Montreal Grand Prix a few years ago. They were married at St. George's chapel in Windsor.

Unfortunately Prince William was unable to attend, having a prior committment to serve as best man at a friend's wedding in Kenya. But his girlfriend, Kate Middleton and Prince Harry's girlfriend, Chelsy Davy, were at the wedding.

This weekend sees the wedding of Prince Joachim of Denmark and his bride Marie. This is Joachim's second marriage. He was married before to Princess Alexandra, who since her remarriage is known as the Countess of Frederiksborg. They had two sons. Marie is French, like Joachim's father.

I love weddings and nothing is better than a royal wedding.