Any guests arriving at the royal wedding at St. George’s Chapel right now will be met with a beautiful mass of flowers around the main entrance. The extravagant foliage isn’t simply a nod to the current flower wall trend, or Hollywood’s first family aka the Kim Kardashian and Kanye West monarchy, it actually has a much more touching meaning, as a tribute to the late Princess Diana.
The flower arch is filled with snow white roses, Princess Diana’s favourite flower. The meaningful homage to Prince Harry’s mother was predicted by her former butler, Paul Burrell. He told Extra:
‘I bet you that Meghan will carry white roses and white peonies because white roses were Diana’s favourite. So those themes will carry through the wedding and Diana’s spirit will be there.’
The inside of the chapel is also filled with flower walls and arches, as revealed by Kensington Palace earlier this morning when they shared a sneak peek inside St. Georges Chapel. The image shows brown fold out chairs sitting in front of a huge flower wall that spanned five arches inside the magnificent chapel.
The royal wedding day is set to be filled with tributes to Diana, as Elton John is also set to perform at the wedding. The singer previously sang Candle In The Wind at princess Diana’s funeral, and was a close friend of the late princess. It’s not yet known when or what he will be performing at Meghan and Harry’s wedding, however his performance alone is thought to be a nod to Diana.
Whether or not Meghan will also carry snow white roses as she walks down the aisle with Prince Charles is yet to be known, but it’s only a matter of hours until we find out!
Click through to see everything we expect to happen today at the royal wedding...
What Will Happen At The Royal Wedding - Grazia Slider
1 of 99:30am: Wedding guests begin to arrive
Wedding guests will begin to arrive – by coach, no less – from 9.30am until 11am, and will walk over to the South Door of St George's Chapel. Prepare to spot assorted Suits stars, Priyanka Chopra, Jessica Mulroney and the Beckhams.
2 of 911:45am: Harry and William will arrive together
Prince Harry will arrive at St George's Chapel by foot, accompanied by his best man the Duke of Cambridge, and will enter via the West Steps. Here, they'll take the time to greet the members of the public gathered in the Castle precinct, including the charity representatives positioned at the Horseshoe Cloister (just outside the Chapel).
3 of 97pm: The couple head to Frogmore House
For all the national excitement, the wedding is a private event, and after the carriage procession, there won't be much left for us to see. The last thing that we'll be able to catch will be the moment that the bride and groom leave the Castle for Frogmore House, where the evening reception will take place.
4 of 912pm: The wedding service begins
The wedding service itself will take about an hour, with a full order of service set to be unveiled to the public on Saturday morning. We already know that Lady Jane Fellowes, Harry's aunt and the elder sister of the late Princess of Wales will give the reading. All three of Diana's siblings will attend the ceremony, and Harry and Meghan have expressed happiness that they'll be able to celebrate her memory on the day.
5 of 911:20am: The royal family arrive in Windsor
Keep your eyes peeled from 11.20am as members of the Royal Family start to arrive at the Chapel, some on foot, others by car.
6 of 911:50am: Meghan will travel to Windsor Castle with her mother
At around the same time, Meghan and her mother, Doria, will leave their overnight location and travel to the Castle by car, passing through the Long Walk where members of the public are expected to gather. They'll briefly stop at the Castle, allowing Doria to travel on to the Chapel while Meghan is joined by bridesmaids and page boys ahead of her big entrance to the Chapel.
7 of 912pm: Meghan walks down the aisle
After Thomas Markle confirmed that he would no longer be walking his daughter down the aisle, having suffered a heart attack last week, it's assumed that Doria will accompany her daughter.
8 of 91pm: The couple will greet charity representatives
Once they've officially tied the knot, the first thing that Harry and Meghan will do is to greet the 200 representatives from Prince Harry's chosen charities, who'll be gathered in the Horseshoe Cloister. In doing so, the couple are acknowledging how important these organisations will be in their future work; according to the Palace, they are 'delighted that these people who will be such an important part of their official work in the years to come will be the first people they see after the wedding.'
9 of 91:05pm: The carriage procession
Then, close family members will gather on the Chapel's steps to wave the couple off, as it's time for Harry and Meghan to step into their carriage (that's the same Ascot Landau that Pippa Middleton rode in at Will and Kate's wedding, in case you needed a refresher) and embark on a 25-minute procession around the castle and town. Hopefully neither of them have previous history with RSI, because all that royal waving could get very tiring. Meghan and Harry's guests will then file out of the church to catch the start of the carriage procession, before heading on to St George's Hall for the reception.