#6 Liza Minnelli & David Gest – $4.2 million
Singing sensation Liza Minnelli married concert promoter David Gest in an extravagant ceremony on New York’s Fifth Avenue in 2002. The guests included the whole Jackson Five, with Michael Jackson as the best man. Elizabeth Taylor was the matron of honor. Queen guitarist Brian May, Liam Neeson, Joan Collins, Gloria Gaynor, Anthony Hopkins, Mia Farrow were among the superstars who attended the elaborate wedding.
The couple did not last though, as they split in just over a year. They filed for divorce five years after, which was branded as the “dirtiest” in Hollywood. Gest complained that Liza would beat him after she had too much alcohol.
#5 Chelsea Clinton & Marc Mezvinsky – $5 million
If you’re the daughter of the former president of the United States and former US Secretary of State, chances are your wedding will be far from simple. And that is just the case for Chelsea Clinton, daughter of ex-US President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State and Senator Hillary Clinton. Chelsea married investment banker Marc Mezvinsky in a grand wedding ceremony at the Astor Courts in 2010. The venue provided a serene and romantic view of the Hudson River.
Just recently, the couple announced that they are expecting their first child.
#4 Wayne Rooney & Coleen McLoughlin – $8 million
Footballer Wayne Rooney of the Manchester United and Coleen McLoughlin made their vows at the Abbey of Cervara near Genoa in Italy in 2008. Serenading the couple and the guests was the Irish boyband, Westlife, which cost $670,000. Ronney chartered five private jets to fly 64 of their guests to the wedding. While the ceremony was lavish, the couple had little help in paying the bills as a magazine offered $4.2 million for the exclusive rights of the wedding photos. Today, Wayne and Coleen are happy with their married lives and are now raising two boys.
#3 Prince William & Kate Middleton – $34 million
The first of the two royal weddings in the list, Prince William made Kate Middleton his wife in 2011 in what was dubbed as “The Wedding of The Century”. Done the regal way deserving of England’s future King and Queen, the ceremony was held at the Westminster Abbey. After which, the couple paraded through the streets of London in a horse-drawn carriage. It is great to see that the couple is still together and is now with a son and expecting their second child.
#2 Vanisha Mittal & Amit Bhatia – $66 million
Vanisha Mittal is the daughter of Lakshmi Mittal, one of the richest men in the world. Not surprisingly, her wedding to Amit Bhatia is one of the most extravagant ever. The wedding was held at the historic 17th century Chateau Veaux le Vicomte near Paris in 2004. An engagement ceremony prior to the wedding took place at the Palace of Versailles.
International recording artists and actress Kylie Minogue was paid $330,000 to perform for just half an hour. After which, a firework display was launched from the Eiffel Tower. The marriage did not last long as the couple called it quits in early 2013.
#1 Prince Charles & Diana – $110 million
Though their wedding took place decades ago, no other wedding has come close to Prince Charles and Princess Diana’s. Witnessed personally by 3,500 people and broadcasted to 750 million TV viewers from around the globe the Royal Wedding between Prince Charles and Princess Diana in 1981 is simply the most expensive wedding ever.
Princess Diana’s wedding gown was covered in 10,000 pearls an had a 25-foot train. She was chauffeured in a glass coach from her place to the cathedral. However, the marriage suffered greatly as both Chrles and Diana participated in flirtations with other people. The royal couple divorced in 1996, a year before Diana met her tragic end in a car crash along with her lover, Egyptian businessman Dodi Fayed.