Royal Watch

Princess Eugenie’s Wedding Comes with a Long List of Rules

Don’t bring a gift or a cell phone, and do come prepared for a bus ride.
Princess Eugenie and fiance Jack Brooksbank.
By Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images.

She may be the only member of the British royal family with a personal Instagram account but Princess Eugenie has banned mobile phones and cameras on her wedding day.

Eugenie has privately asked guests not to tweet or post pictures on social media, and all guests have been formally advised that they will be asked “to surrender mobile telephones, cameras, and any electronic devices used for image capture” on arrival at the reception that will follow her October 12 wedding at Windsor Castle.

Guests for Friday’s wedding between the princess and Jack Brooksbank have received an information packet with all the dos and don’ts for the big day. Guests have been asked not to bring wedding presents (the couple do have a wedding registry and should send gifts to the Duke of York’s office at Buckingham Palace), hand luggage, or a camera because “photography is not allowed in St George’s Chapel or Windsor Castle.”

It will be an early start for the 850-strong congregation, and even the A-list guests—likely to include George and Amal Clooney and Robbie Williams— have been told to bring two forms of identification and arrive at a farm shop in Windsor. They will then be escorted onto minibuses and driven to the church where they are to be seated by 10:15 A.M. Guests are also advised that there are “limited toilet facilities” in the church which will only be in use from 8 to 10 A.M.

Eugenie was spotted in Windsor this week for final meetings with staff at the church and castle, while Buckingham Palace has announced further details about the wedding. The couple have chosen London-based cake-maker Sophie Cabot to create a red velvet and chocolate cake. Cabot, a former costume designer, will craft a “modern” cake that will “incorporate the rich colors of autumn in its design and will be covered with detailed sugar work, including ivy.” Eugenie has chosen an autumnal theme for her wedding day with wreaths, berries, and seasonal flowers from the gardens of Windsor Castle adorning the church and castle.

The church music will be as star-studded as the crowd, with performances by opera singer Andrea Bocelli and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. The wedding will also have a military theme with trumpeters from the band of the Household Cavalry performing a fanfare before the Archbishop of York leads a prayer for the wedding service and a salute for the newlyweds.

The Dean of Windsor, the Right Reverend David Conner will officiate as the couple make their vows. As they depart, members of Nijmegen Company Grenadier Guards will line the West Steps of St. George’s Chapel, while pipers from the 2nd Battalion the Royal Regiment of Scotland will perform as the bride and groom set off on a carriage procession through Windsor.

Just as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle did on their wedding day in May, Eugenie and Brooksbank plan to kiss for the cameras on the West Steps before they depart for a 15-minute carriage procession through the streets of Windsor.

The Wedding Day Schedule

10:15 Congregation to be seated in St. George’s Chapel

10:25–10:55 Members of the royal family and Jack Brooksbank’s family arrive at St. George’s Chapel

11:00 Service begins

11:55 Service ends

12:10 Guests will make their way on foot to the reception at Windsor Castle

3:30 Reception at Windsor Castle ends. Motor coaches will return guests to the Farm Shop