This past Saturday, The Duchess of Cambridge’s younger brother, James Middleton, married Alizée Thevenet in Bormes-les-Mimosas, where the bride’s family currently resides. The couple announced their engagement in September 2019 and were due to marry last year, but those plans were postponed due to the pandemic.
Details are sparse, and so far the only photo the public has seen came from James himself when he posted the above pic to his Instagram account. However, courtesy of the town mayor, we do know that William, Kate, and their three children were in attendance along with the rest of the Middleton family.
Per Francois Arizzi:
“It was a very pleasant family ceremony. There were about fifty people, including Pippa Middleton. Prince William and Kate were very discreet. They did not want to steal the show from the newlyweds, Alizée Thevenet and James Middleton, who is a very nice lad […] Prince William did not have any formal attire, but wore a beige and off-white suit. The Princess had a long, light green coloured dress on. I was able to chat with them in very poor English, and we talked about the charms of Bormes-les-Mimosas and its climate […] The bride and groom were very happy, they were able to pose and take pictures in front of the town hall, and the two dogs, who caused them to meet in the first place, were there. They then went to a private venue to celebrate.”
Wedding plans were reportedly kept hush-hush. The Cambridges flew privately and the entire event was carried out without any fanfare – a marked change of pace from even Pippa’s wedding in 2017 when Kensington Palace put out a formal announcement that George and Charlotte would participate in the wedding party.
While there was no specific confirmation, it’s a safe bet that Michael and Carol Middleton were also there, along with Pippa’s husband, James Matthews, and their two children, Arthur and Grace.
James and Alizée have been dating since 2018, when apparently one of James’s dogs approached her at a private club in London. The new Mrs. Middleton works as a financial analyst, and while the two have kept a home together in London, they’ve spent much of the pandemic living with Michael and Carol in Berkshire. Earlier this year they bought their own home Berkshire home (it’s unclear if they intend to maintain their London residence in addition.)
Notably, there’s been recent reports that William and Kate are also considering a move to Berkshire, which would allow them to be not only be closer to the Middletons, but also the Queen who spends the majority of her time at nearby Windsor. I’ve heard two potential versions – one is that they keep Kensington Palace as their primary home and leave the children in their London schools, but a Berkshire home is closer for weekends, and the other is that they make their Berkshire home their base and maintain Kensington Palace as their office and London home, as needed. Anmer Hall, their Norfolk home, would likely then only be used at Christmas and during summer holidays. We shall see.
With that, congratulations to the happy couple!
Meanwhile, it’s back to business for the Cambridges. After the typical summer break, William was out and about last week, while Kate carried out her first engagement of the season earlier today. The Duchess was at RAF Brize Norton where she met those who participated in Operation Pitting, which airlifted 15,000 people out of Kabul following the horrifying events in Afghanistan.
Embed from Getty ImagesShe wore a Reiss blazer, Jigsaw trousers, and carried a Tusting bag. This look is definitely becoming her new uniform.
And yes, I’ve seen the TIME article with Harry and Meghan – more on that later 🙂
I love reading your blog. It’s interesting, informative and balanced. Please post more on here. I know you’re on Instagram but I don’t have that, I’m old 🤣. Honestly, seeing this new post made my day. You have been missed. 💕
Thank you! I’m going to try to be better about posting more regularly 🙂
I would love to read your opinion on the Time cover (and the memes) but more about the entire PR rebranding or whatever is called Harry and Meghan seem to have planned for this month, I’ll dare to say that cover won’t be the last we’ll hear of them
It is nice to know that the Cambridges were able to attend the ceremony while still giving the bride & groom the privacy they clearly desired.