Lockdown rules could spell end of Princess Beatrice's wedding plans
Lockdown rules released by the government to help the UK get back to work might mean the end of wedding plans for Princess Beatrice.
The royal’s nuptial arrangements have been in chaos for several months as the coronavirus pandemic spread across the world.
Princess Beatrice and her fiance Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi had already cancelled their reception which was due to be held on 29 May in the garden of Buckingham Palace after their ceremony.
Now it seems she won’t be able to have her ceremony, even with just a handful of guests, as the government suggests no weddings will be held before 1 June.
On Monday the government released a document which sets out how the UK could begin a phased return to normal life after seven weeks of lockdown.
Phase two is the first mention of weddings, where the government states: “In addition, the Government is also examining how to enable people to gather in slightly larger groups to better facilitate small weddings.”
But this second step won’t happen in time for Beatrice and Mozzi to go ahead with their wedding.
Read more: Princess Beatrice speaks about 'challenging time' as her wedding is still in doubt
Yahoo UK has contacted Buckingham Palace for comment.
Beatrice, 31, had been understood to be planning to use the gazebos and infrastructure put up for the Queen’s annual summer parties for her reception.
The palace cancelled this year’s parties, both in London and Edinburgh, and soon after the couple was forced to make the same decision.
However they have not formally made an announcement about the ceremony since then.
When changes across the country first began to come in throughout February and early March, the Church of England said wedding ceremonies could only have five people present.
It would have meant Beatrice and Mozzi, 36, could only have had their witnesses and the vicar present.
However that was off the agenda when Boris Johnson announced the national lockdown and banned all wedding ceremonies.
Read more: Coronavirus: Sarah Ferguson says 'it's okay to be worried during lockdown'
But with no end date on lockdown, the couple appeared to be keeping the date of their wedding under constant review.
No statement has been released from the palace since 18 March, when a spokesman said: “Princess Beatrice and Mr Mapelli Mozzi are very much looking forward to getting married but are equally aware of the need to avoid undertaking any unnecessary risks in the current circumstances.
“In line with government advice for the UK and beyond, the couple are reviewing their arrangements for 29th May.
“They are particularly conscious of government advice in relation to both the wellbeing of older family members and large gatherings of people. Therefore, the planned reception in the Buckingham Palace Gardens will not take place. The couple will carefully consider government advice before deciding whether a private marriage might take place amongst a small group of family and friends.”
However since then, Beatrice’s mother, Sarah Ferguson, had said the wedding was off, in an interview with Royal Central.
There had not been another announcement about the plans, but Ferguson confirmed to Royal Central “Princess Beatrice’s wedding to Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, planned for 29 May, has been postponed due to the global coronavirus pandemic”.
Beatrice has kept quiet about the day, but did allude to tough times in a video to support one of the charities she works with.
In a video for the Helen Arkhall dyslexia charity she said: “This is an incredibly challenging time. For the world and the United Kingdom.”
Beatrice announced her engagement in September 2019 and was planning to marry in St James’s Palace.
The wedding was already somewhat overshadowed by her father’s headline grabbing friendship with the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Prince Andrew gave a disastrous interview with BBC Newsnight in which he said he did not regret being friends with Epstein - who killed himself in prison while awaiting trial for sexual offences.
He stepped back from royal duties in November last year, and since then, Beatrice announced plans for a wedding on a much smaller scale than her sister’s grand Windsor affair.
