The rise of the celebrity wedding

Last week, I did not attend a family wedding. To be more accurate, I drove my mother (who is almost 90) to the venue and picked her up afterwards, but was not invited as a guest. The wedding took place in a splendid castle rather than a church, lasted most of the day, and (according to my mother) was like a long enjoyable party. Many of the men wore kilts, while the bride had no need to blush since she has lived with the groom for several years. My mother had a wonderful time.

This kind of wedding is increasingly popular, and is modelled on the celebrity example. As social relationships within communities weaken because of commuting (for both men and women) and the domination of television, people take their guidance on how to live their lives from the examples of celebrities. Tradition, religion and morality become less important than an outward display of mimicry. The greatest celebrity events are weddings, held in private so that exclusive rights for photography can be sold to Hello or OK magazines. The event is therefore staged with the care that would be expected of a film or a play in the West End.

The celebrity example means that many people now regard a wedding as an opportunity to star in their own theatrical event. This has inflated the cost of weddings, which have become the largest single item of expenditure for many couples apart from buying their house. People can not usually afford such an event when they first live together, and so weddings are postponed for many years. This has a profound effect on the meaning of the event. A wedding of this kind is no longer a commitment by a man and a woman to live together and support each other through life, but is instead a party to celebrate several years of sustained cohabitation. It is no longer a union of two families celebrated in their presence, or for that matter in the presence of the public.

So church bells will ring less often across the fields of my village on a Saturday, and weddings will become private fancy dress parties for ageing couples.