Royal wedding: Mirrorman's fancy dress for London street party

Mirrorman Steve Myall joins the royal wedding party

CROWDS from around the world hit the London streets in colourful fancy dress to celebrate Wills and Kate's big day.

Joining them was the Daily Mirror's wannabe wedding guest Steve Myall complete with top hat and tails courtesy of Moss Bros.

Outside Buckingham Palace were the Lavekau family who had jetted in from Fiji.

Lance Corporal Ana was joined by aunt Wakesa Tora, 47, who said: "I am so pleased to be here. It is such a wonderful occaision.

"Kate is so beautiful."

From Michigan, USA, came Christine, 58, and Olivia Wofford, 22, who had slept out in the open opposite the palace since 11pm the night before in order to get the best view.

Olivia said she still hoped William would be happy and had her heart set on his brother as she clutched a placard reading "Marry me Harry".

Closer to home were the Smith family from Colchester, Essex, who had bought pensioner Rene Cousins, 80, to watch the big day.

Her daughter, Miriam, said: "We are stocked up on ham and pickle sandwiches which should keep us going.

"It will be worth it though to see that kiss."

Outside Westminster Abbey among the periscope sellers and flag wavers there were smiles at every turn.

Winitta Ruangperm-Pool had brought the three generations of her family all the way from Thailand for a week long holiday and a chance to see the Royals.

She said: "Britain is good. William is handsome."

Beverley Smith, 51, from Mansfield, Notts, a nursing home assistant, had been given a trip to London as a Christmas present so she could soak up the Royal experience.

She said: "It's the best present.

"I am here with a friend for three days and we are loving it."

Pretty student Isobel Crowley, 18, from Carshalton, Surrey, was having a champagne picnic on the green in Parliament Square.

She donned a Kate Middleton mask and looked the double of the future Queen in a cream dress and hat.

She said: "We have been here since 5am and will be here all day.

"It is so wonderful to be able to toast William and Kate.

"I feel part of something great."

Louise Llewellyn, originally from Swansea, travelled from Southampton with daughter Megan, 15, to wish the couple well.

The 43-year-old said: "We caught the 6am train to be here.

"We thought we'd get dressed up and wave the Welsh flag for Prince Charles.

"I expect he will be so proud."

From further afield came Josef Alberts, 60, from Dussledorf, Germany, who dressed in a Union Jack policeman's hat.

The retired Reki teacher said: "Today we all united whether we are Germany or English.

"We are going to have a laugh and drink together.

"In Germany we love Wills and Kate."

- On May 12 Moss Bros are opening a new concept in suit shopping in Canary Wharf where customers can take advantage of the made to order service Moss Bespoke which uses the iPad to process orders.

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Royal wedding reception party a surreal gig, says singer Ellie Goulding

Ellie Goulding sang for Prince William and bride Kate Middleton at Buckingham Palace

Ellie Goulding has described serenading the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge as a "very surreal, incredible experience" after being asked by the couple to perform at their wedding.

The singer-songwriter played to 650 guests at the after-dinner party hosted by the Queen and was honoured to sing for William and Kate's first dance.

Describing the poignant moment on the BBC's The One Show, the chart-topper said: "It was a very surreal, incredible experience. I'll never forget it. It was amazing."

Asked by presenter Alex Jones if she had been nervous, she said: "I get nervous quite a lot generally so yes, I was."

When Jones enquired if the Duke was "a good mover", Goulding dodged the question, replying: "It was a good night. Everyone was having fun."

Among several numbers performed by the singer, guests enjoyed her hit version of Your Song, a piece written by Sir Elton John, a close friend of William's late mother, the Princess of Wales.

The 24-year-old said that she could not remember how many songs she had played but added there were "quite a few".

The star said she could not believe it when she was asked to perform at the royal wedding after being introduced to William and Kate last year.

"I met them at a festival last year. Quite strangely I was introduced to them by Tinie Tempah who is also a friend of mine," Goulding said.

"It was very bizarre but that's when I met them and then I found out a while ago that they wanted me to sing."

Goulding, from Kington, Herefordshire, got her big break when she was tipped as the act to watch last year by industry experts in the BBC Sound of 2010 list.

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200 Quit Syria's Ruling Party in Protest

By DIAA HADID and ELIZABETH A. KENNEDY Associated Press

Members of Syrian army units have clashed with each other over carrying out President Bashar Assad's orders to crack down on protesters in the southern city of Daraa, the heart of the uprising, witnesses and human rights groups said Thursday.

More than 500 people have been killed across Syria — about 100 in Daraa alone — since the popular revolt against Assad began in mid-March, according to human rights groups.

While the infighting in Daraa does not indicate any decisive splits in the military, it is significant because Assad's army always has been seen as a bastion of support for the regime. The Syrian military has denied that there had been any splits in the military.

On Thursday, more soldiers in armored personnel carriers rolled into Daraa, where residents huddled inside homes in fear amid the blasts of mortars and heavy gunfire, as well as snipers on high rooftops and mosques, a resident said by satellite telephone. Like other witnesses in Syria, he spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of government retaliation.

Ausama Monajed, a spokesman for a group of opposition figures in Syria and abroad, said the clashes among the soldiers have occurred since Assad sent the army into Daraa on Monday. The deployment was a clear escalation in his crackdown on the uprising.

"There are some battalions that refused to open fire on the people," Monajed told The Associated Press, citing witnesses on the ground in Daraa. "Battalions of the 5th Division were protecting people, and returned fire when they were subjected to attacks by the 4th Division."

The 4th division is run by the president's brother, Maher.

The reports were corroborated by three witnesses in Daraa and an activist contacted by the AP. All four asked that their names not be used for fear of reprisals.

A witness in Daraa told the AP that he saw soldiers from different army units clashing Monday in front of the Bilal mosque in central Daraa, when Syrian forces rolled into town. He said the battle between the forces lasted for several hours.

"We saw ordinary soldiers fall," the resident said. "And then I heard people shout "God is great! They are martyrs of freedom!"

Syria has banned nearly all foreign media and restricted access to trouble spots since the uprising began, making it almost impossible to verify the dramatic events shaking one of the most authoritarian, anti-Western regimes in the Arab world.

The government has blamed armed thugs and a foreign conspiracy for the unrest, not true reform seekers.

State-run Syrian TV has been running lingering, gruesome close-ups of dead soldiers, their eyes blown out and parts of their limbs missing, to back up their claims that they were under attack.

In a further blow to Assad, more than 200 members have quit Syria's ruling Baath Party in the southern province, a human rights activist said.

On Wednesday night, six tanks rolled into the key northern port of Latakia — in the heartland of Syria's ruling elite — and security forces opened fire on anti government demonstrators, wounding six, witnesses said.

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Royal Wedding: Britons get behind Prince William and Kate Middleton and get the party started

With less than 24 hours to go until the big day, Britons got the party started early today.

A nation of royal well-wishers got behind Prince William and Kate Middleton today in all manner of ways.

Union Jacks and bunting were the order of the day as the UK got itself dressed up for the wedding.

See pictures of Britain getting ready below.

The media and well-wishers have gathered in their thousands outside Westminster Abbey ahead of the Royal Wedding

The scene outside the Abbey was one of excitement as the makeshift tent village steadily increased in size

More than 50 tents lined the cobbled pavement with some dedicated royalists deciding to brave the weather despite having no tent or protection from the cold wind

A royal fan catches up on all the latest news in The Daily Mirror

Armed police officers patrol near The Goring hotel while (right) TV presenter Phil Spencer helps put up bunting in Winchester

A man holds a souvenir bag with a picture of Prince William and his soon-to-be bride Kate Middleton

Pupils of Kirby Hill school take part in a mock wedding ceremony

A street vendor sells royal wedding souvenirs outside Westminster Abbey

Kamlesh the lion enjoys a Royal Wedding cake made by the keepers at Edinburgh Zoo. While (right) Union flags fly in front Big Ben

Bunting hangs across 10 Downing Street in London in readiness for a street party

While inside number 10, Larry the cat, sits on the cabinet table wearing a Union Jack bow tie

The Queen's Guard march out of Buckingham Palace

Two women drape themselves in Union jack flags as they wait outside Westminster Abbey while a doorman sweeps the road at The Goring hotel

Asda employees get into the royal wedding spirit with a 'wear your wedding dress to work' day

Mirror reader Shelley Marshall sent in this picture of her jumping for joy outside Westmisnter Abbey

Send in your pictures to pics@mirror.co.uk and we will use the best on the mirror.co.uk tomorrow.

Download the Daily Mirror's 'Wills & Kate A Royal Love Story' souvenir mobile app for iPhone, iTouch, iPad or Nokia smartphone here

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Join in The Sun's Royal Tweet Party for wedding of Wills and Kate

We want your messages, photos and videos - no matter where you are in the country.

Send us your tweets - hashtagged #royaltweetparty - throughout the special day.

We'll publish the best in a special live blog which kicks off at 9am.

Whether you're at a street party, pub or simply celebrating at home in front of the telly, you can take part.

We'll use the best pics, comments and videos in our live blog, which will also feature tweets from columnists, Royal experts and guest celebs - plus of course all the big breaking news on the day.

You can also follow all the fun on The Sun's Facebook page at facebook.com/thesun

How you can get involved

Tweet #royaltweetparty throughout the day. Leave your name and a message on our Royal Tweet Party page. You can also log in using your Facebook/Twitter account. Send photos from your Facebook/Twitter accounts or upload directly from our party page. Upload a video message to YouTube, send us the link and we'll post the best online.

Come back tomorrow from 9am and join in all the fun!

THE Sun is to publish a special iPad edition to celebrate the Royal Wedding on Friday afternoon.

Our historic ePaper will be packed with must-see photos and up-to-date news from Kate & Wills' big day.

It will be available via the The Sun's chart-topping iPad app from around 4pm onwards on Friday afternoon.

Users can download the paper in the normal way but you MUST delete Friday morning's edition first in order to make room for the wedding edition in your app's library.

HOW TO GET THE ROYAL EDITION...

STEP 1 - If you have already downloaded Friday morning's paper go into library section and touch and hold on that day's edition in order to bring up X button.

STEP 2 - Touch x button to bring up delete prompt and confirm you wish to delete.

STEP 3 - Close app and reopen in order to reactivate the normal download process. Our Royal edition should be available from 4pm onwards.

If you've not already tried The Sun for iPad app, then there's never been a better time to give it a whirl.

The app is free for the first 30 days - after which you can choose to renew your access at ?4.99 for another 30 days.

For that all-in-one price you get the full 'printed' edition of the paper Monday to Saturday, downloaded straight to your iPad (includes Buzz magazine on Saturdays with full TV listings)

You can swipe through pages in the normal way and pinch and zoom articles of interest.

There's also a Text-only button for easier reading of longer articles, plus a special Sun View feature that enables you to swipe through mini-pages to the section you want.

The app also features a News Ticker to keep you up-to-date with main headlines throughout the day - simply touch on a headline to activate a breaking story. Plus every Monday we publish our famous Page360 graphics - a fully interactive version of Page 3 which you can use to make our models pirouette through 360-degrees.

It's great value - and means you can enjoy the paper that you love anytime, any place - as each issue is stored on your pad. You can download via WiFi or 3G, although we recommend using WiFi wherever possible.

To sample the app simply go to the App Store and search for 'The Sun'. You'll join thousands of iPad owners who choose to read The Sun every day on Apple's great tablet device.

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Royal wedding reception: Ellie Goulding to perform at after dinner party

Ellie Goulding

Chart star Ellie Goulding will play for Prince William and Kate Middleton and their guests at the royal wedding reception.

The singer, who had her biggest hit last year with a cover of Sir Elton John's Your Song, will perform at the after dinner party at Buckingham Palace.

Goulding, from Kington in Herefordshire, got her big break when she was tipped as the act to watch last year by industry experts in the BBC Sound of 2010 list.

She also won the Critics' Choice Award at the Brit Awards in the same year.

The singer-songwriter, who learnt to play the guitar as a teenager, dropped out of university to pursue a music career.

Her debut album, Lights, went to straight to number one on its release.

Download the Daily Mirror's 'Wills & Kate A Royal Love Story' souvenir mobile app for iPhone, iTouch, iPad or Nokia smartphone here

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Fry-up for 300 pals at Prince Harry's late party

The 26-year-old and his nightclub owner pal Guy Pelly are overseeing an exclusive party at Buckingham Palace.

After a dinner and speeches the 300 guests will be treated to champagne, cocktails and spirits. And it is understood the caterers have been told to prepare the early-morning sarnies and fry-ups for anyone who is still awake.

The Queen won't be at the Palace - so she's not in the way. She and Prince Philip will reportedly head to Windsor Castle after the afternoon reception for 650 guests.

A source said of the Palace bash: "It won't be for the oldies, but the young ones. Harry has organised a survivors' breakfast. He is determined to make this a night to remember."

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Middleton family to throw third wedding party

Wills and Kate's do - their second that day at the Queen's home - is limited to 300 people, meaning many of the 254 wedding guests of Carole Middleton, 55, and hubby Michael, 61, will miss out.

So the Middletons will spend ?25,000 hiring the entire Goring hotel to throw a barbecue while they party with the bride and groom at the Palace next door.

A source said: "It's their way to soften the blow. But it's not ideal."

BRIT designer Chloe Bayly has made doll-size replicas of Kate's most famous outfits for The Harumika Bridal Collection, set to go on sale at Toys R Us.

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Fry-up for 300 pals at Prince Harry's late party

The 26-year-old and his nightclub owner pal Guy Pelly are overseeing an exclusive party at Buckingham Palace.

After a dinner and speeches the 300 guests will be treated to champagne, cocktails and spirits. And it is understood the caterers have been told to prepare the early-morning sarnies and fry-ups for anyone who is still awake.

The Queen won't be at the Palace - so she's not in the way. She and Prince Philip will reportedly head to Windsor Castle after the afternoon reception for 650 guests.

A source said of the Palace bash: "It won't be for the oldies, but the young ones. Harry has organised a survivors' breakfast. He is determined to make this a night to remember."

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Kate Middleton is party princess in uni photos

At the time the princess-to-be, who displays a liking for off-the-shoulder outfits, had just started dating a handsome fella she shared a house with - fellow St Andrews student Wills.

The pictures taken in 2002 - eight years before he popped the question - show Kate at a series of functions including a Christmas party.

At other bashes including a jazz night she poses with uni pals Mickey Lawson and Ed Gribbon, who was sporting lipstick on his face.

ONE in four office workers are still waiting to know if they can have the wedding day off - even though it is a bank holiday.

The problem is worst in London with almost a third saying they have not been told.

A survey by recruitment firm Badenoch & Clark warned workers could "react badly" to a last-minute decision.

Spokesman Lynne Hardman said: "Bosses don't have to give staff bank holidays off.

"But perhaps they could allow flexi-working or let people watch the ceremony at work."

SALES of traditional cakes like Eccles and Victoria sponges are soaring in the wedding run-up.

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