A gay Royal Wedding

Congratulations to Lord Ivar Mountbatten, the younger son of the third Marquess of Milford Haven and a cousin of the Queen, who married James Coyle on the weekend.

The couple were married in matching velvet smoking jackets at Bridwell Park, where Mountbatten raised his three daughters with ex-wife Lady (Penny) Mountbatten. In a show of love Mountbatten's wife of 17 years gave him away in a ceremony solemnised at the property’s private chapel.

At the reception for 60 guests monkfish was served along with Pol Roger champagne, while a cake was traded for a tiered-cheese offering.

The great-great-great grandson of Queen Victoria told Britain’s Daily Mail that he was marrying because of Coyle, who he met in 2014 at the Swiss alpine resort Verbier.

"I suppose if we had met ten years ago a civil partnership would have been nice, but now that marriage between a man and a man is legal it seems the right thing to do," says Mountbatten.

"I have had the whole marriage thing — and been very happy — but James hasn’t, so I see it as a validation of my love for him."

No members of the Royal Family were in attendance with Prince Edward the Earl of Wessex and godfather to two of Mountbatten’s daughters sending best wishes.

Mountbatten posted a photograph of his dog Rosie to social media following the ceremony captioned: "Rosie is exhausted from participating in the marriage ceremony, not to mention hoovering up all the scraps falling from the party tables!   #itsadogslife#myownersjustgotmarried #toabloke! #omg"

Coyle returns to work as an airline cabin manager this week, with the couple postponing their honeymoon until later in the year.