Not to be outdone by the nation's blue bloods, the Big Fat Gypsy Wedding crowd have staged their own flamboyant "royal" wedding.
The aim was to create the most lavish wedding possible with no expense spared.
True to form it features a billowing bridal gown that will doubtless make Kate Middleton's frock look like a modest petticoat.
Irish travellers Mary and her hubby Paddy, who was too shy to appear on screen, tied the knot last week for a special Channel 4 show to air at 9pm on April 28 - the night before that other wedding somewhat further up the social ladder.
Maybe Kate will watch it herself as she prepares for her own big day.
"I just want to feel like a princess," declared 23-year-old bride Mary as she deliberated over exactly how long her wedding train should be.
She plumped for an extravagant 18ft number, which at 11ft wide was broader than the ivory taffeta and antique lace gown that Princess Diana dragged through the arches of St Paul's Cathedral three decades ago.
And then there were the "decorations", a mere 40,000 individual crystals that turned the snow white gown into a worthy stand-in for the Saturday Night Fever glitterball.
As with its gaudy predecessors, this lorry load of linen was the creation of show dressmaker Thelma Madine - Liverpool's latest household name.
She and her team of seamstresses were tasked with conjuring up a dress that would rival her soon-to-be Royal Highness's in just three weeks.
The gang set about their challenge working day and night to make the monster frock.
Never before had they sewed so many crystals into one dress.
They also had to create two mini versions for Mary's younger sisters, Nikita and Caitlin, who were "mini-brides" for the occasion - a tradition among some Irish travellers.
Her other sister, Margaret, 18, her mum and five bridesmaids also required sugar-pink dresses with crystal-encrusted bodices.
A source describing the scene said: "Poor Thelma and her team were drowning in all this material and sewing on the crystals was painstaking work.
"Most people take months to get weddings sorted but they were under the tightest deadline imaginable.
"Mary was very keen to impress that she should look like a princess on her big day.
"She spoke about Kate Middleton and how she wanted her wedding to be just as showy as she imagined Kate's would be.
"It's fair to say this was one of Thelma's toughest ever briefs."
Many travellers like to say that their appetite for flamboyant wedding frocks stems from Princess Di's ?9,000 Elizabeth Emanuel wedding dress - a thought that would probably amuse the late People's Princess.
Of course a gypsy wedding is not all about the dress, despite their gargantuan sizes.
Mary wore a crystal-encrusted tiara and carried a bouquet of white roses entwined in ribbon and covered with - you guessed it - more crystals.
And no princess is complete without her carriage, which came in the shape of a Katie Price-style bubble coach, in white.
Six horses (also white) were charged with delivering the bride to the wedding venue - and they certainly earned their keep.
The dress was so enormous Mary was a little lost inside. Margaret travelled ahead with the bridesmaids in a stretched limo to the venue - the Wood Green Animal Shelters "set in 52 acres of picturesque Cambridgeshire countryside".
She filled the chief bridesmaid role, just as Kate's sister Pippa will at the Royal Wedding.
And, as Kate is rumoured to be doing herself, Mary was late. A whole hour late. Poor old Paddy, also 23, was left fretting at the altar.
Again, as Kate will be forced to endure, TV cameras followed the couple's every "I Do" and "promise to love and cherish" and they emerged to huge applause from locals and fellow travellers. Pride of place at the reception was a gigantic cake that was a replica of her horses and carriage and matched Mary's dress for sheer extravagance.
Made by the same firm that toiled over the Disney castle cake featured in the hit series screened earlier this year, it was not without its problems.
As accustomed as the venue was to dealing with wedding cakes, it struggled to find a table big enough.
An eye-witness said: "There was a huge panic as this thing was absolutely enormous. It took two men to lift and it looked as though it was going to have to sit on the floor as there were no tables big enough.
"Fortunately the traveller community are nothing if not resourceful and a makeshift podium was created from three trestle tables."
It was all in a day's work for the Animal Shelter though, whose day job is finding homes for 5,500 lost and unwanted animals each year.
A spokesman said: "We pulled out all of the stops to ensure Wood Green looked absolutely stunning on the day.
"All of the staff involved worked tremendously hard to ensure the bride, groom and their families had a great time."
Buckingham Palace courtiers take note - don't scrimp on the trestle tables when Kate and Will retreat to the Queen's 306-year-old gaff after their nuptials.
Mary and Paddy, who have been with each other for three years, have already settled on their marital home - a caravan in their hometown of Peterborough. And they have committed themselves to a life of travel.
A show source said: "It really was a dream come true for Mary. She and Paddy might not have the millions that Kate and Wills have at their disposal.
"But they made the best of what they had and it was a day that they will cherish for ever."
c.robertson@the-sun.co.uk
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