Nobody can deny that good cheer has been in short supply in the House of Windsor of late.
So it was with blessed relief that the King and Queen and the rest of the Royal Family were able to finally come together yesterday for something reliably joyous – a wedding.
Naturally the bride and groom – Harriet Sperling and the King’s nephew Peter Phillips – appeared giddy with happiness. But so too did everyone else.
Charles and Camilla couldn’t stop smiling. Neither could Prince William and Kate. Everyone knows the royals expertly mask their troubles, but outside All Saints Church in Kemble, Gloucestershire, the joy was genuine and plain to see.
What a much-needed blast of goodwill, the King doubtless reflected.
Maybe Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie didn’t seem quite as enraptured as the other guests, indeed they looked anxious at times, as if one or other of their parents might embarrass them by turning up at any moment.
Prince William did a good job of putting them at their ease, though, giving both a peck on the cheek.
And, thankfully, neither Beatrice nor Eugenie wore fascinators – the accessory that brought them such ridicule when they attended 48-year-old Peter’s first wedding in 2008.
The King’s nephew Peter Phillips holds an umbrella above his new wife Harriet Sperling
Jack Brooksbank, Princess Eugenie, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi and Princess Beatrice arrive for the wedding
King Charles waves to the crowd as he arrives at the wedding – royal enthusiasts turned out on masse to celebrate the happy couple
Camilla beamed as she waved to well-wishers in a glamorous butter yellow hat and matching coat dress
The Princess of Wales looked effortlessly elegant as she joined members of the Royal Family at the wedding of Peter Phillips and Harriet Sperling today
Anything and anyone that might have darkened this happy occasion was expunged. As well as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Fergie, this included Prince Harry.
Was he invited? Would he have come anyway? Was he even talking to his cousin, Peter?
It is hard to keep track of Harry and his petty feuds and rivalries.
As it was, grey skies and rain delivered the only sour note. But Princess Anne’s son and his bride managed to make a virtue of the drizzle, posing for photographs under a stylish brolly.
Harriet, 45, an NHS nurse, wore a dress of romantic white lace by Kate Middleton’s favourite designer, Emilia Wickstead.
To cries of ‘hip, hip hooray’ she arrived at the church with her three bridesmaids, Peter’s children Savannah, 15, and Isla, 14, and her own daughter Georgina.
Royal fans from all over the world travelled to the event and saved their loudest cheers for the Prince and Princess of Wales, immaculate in a cream boucle Roland Mouret dress, which featured a folded collar, belt and buttons, along with a full skirt and a boater-style hat.
During the ceremony, the bride was walked down the aisle by her brother Nicholas in honour of their late father Rupert Sanders.
The Prince of Wales seen giving his cousin Beatrice a kiss on the cheek at the service
The blushing bride beamed as she arrived alongside her bridesmaids for her royal wedding in the Cotswolds
The bride and groom shared a sweet kiss after their ceremony
The King and Queen were the first to depart, whisked off by car to a waiting helicopter for a flight to Epsom in time for the Derby.
As the bells of All Saints Church rang, the crowd of around 300 well-wishers cheered loudly and the assembled guests formed an impromptu umbrella guard of honour so that the bride and groom could emerge almost dry for photographs outside.
Peter and Harriet stood beneath a huge white umbrella with their three bridesmaids behind waving to the crowd before making their exit in a vintage Rolls-Royce.
Shortly afterwards Kate and William drew more cheers from the crowd as they too were driven off in a black Audi.
Peter and Harriet were later joined by their family and close friends for their wedding reception at Gatcombe Park, home to Princess Anne and her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Lawrence.
Additional reporting: Nick Craven and Nic North
