HISTORY’s Moment in Media: The Wedding of the Century -- Lady Diana and Prince Charles

On July 29 1981 44 years ago this month 20yearold Lady Diana Spencer married Prince Charles the Prince of Wales The bride was a kindergarten teacher the groom was the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and therefore heir to the throne of the United Kingdom Called amp8220The Wedding of the Centuryamp8221 it was estimated to cost 48 million or about 170 million todayIt was also a major international media eventThe fairytale nuptials took place in Londonamp8217s St Paulamp8217s Cathedral the first royal wedding to be held there since Prince Arthur Henry VII39s eldest son married Princess Catherine of Aragon in 1501 The venue was chosen over the traditional Westminster Abbey where thenPrincess Elizabeth had married Prince Philip in 1947 because of its larger capacity 3500 guests filled the grand domed church while Westminster holds only 2000 Another 600000 people lined the streets of London hoping for a glimpse of the various royal carriage rides through townBut that was dwarfed by the estimated 750 million people who watched in 74 countries around the world In Britain an estimated 39 million people watched or 70 percent of the populationAmericans were glued to their screens too amp8220American television of course was thoroughly prepared for the occasion sometimes to the point of absurdityamp8221 noted the veteran New York Times television critic John J Oamp8217Connor NBCamp8217s Today and ABCamp8217s Good Morning America broadcast from London for the week leading up to the wedding which he noted left the morning shows with plenty of air to fill amp8220On NBC Willard Scott the irresistibly friendly weatherman was sent to a pub for among other things some dartthrowing And ABCamp8217s Joan Lunden took a bus tour of London with an excessively chatty magicianamp8221Live wedding coverage started at 430 AM Eastern time Local stations carried the BBCamp8217s feed while the networks mixed the BBC pool coverage especially from within the church with their own cameras ABC oneupped its rival networks by gaining access to the feed from ITC the independent British network The networks also provided plenty of commentators on their London sets amp8220American television needless to say abhors a silenceamp8221 Oamp8217Connor wrote ABC had an actor dressed for a royal wedding in a top hat CBS had the British TV journalist David Frost and Lady Antonia Fraser an author and historian NBC offered the author Robert Lacey who wrote Majesty The broadcasts also became part of the story Oamp8217Connor noted that on the telecasts you could hear cheers from outside the church as people watched on their portable TVsThe marriage of course proved less impressive than the wedding and Charles and Diana divorced 15 years later But the wedding marked the beginning of a long line of media and cultural moments Just over a year later the Washington Post TV critic Tom Shales reported on two rival TV movies inspired by the wedding jockeying for bragging rights on CBS and ABC Later their split became its own ongoing media drama with countless rival books and exposamp233s and major TV interviewsAnd even as audiences have splintered and the royal family has been tarnished by scandal it still commands an impressive TV audience According to Britainamp8217s Department for Culture Media and Sport the 2023 coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla was watched by 2 billion people in 125 countriesBut the amp8220Wedding of the Centuryamp8221 still holds the Guinness World Record for the largest TV audience for a weddingClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillageorgMyersBizNet

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HISTORY’s Moment in Media: The Wedding of the Century -- Lady Diana and Prince Charles

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HISTORY’s Moment in Media: The Wedding of the Century -- Lady Diana and Prince Charles

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