Viewers Share Favorite Royal Wedding Moments

Tim Skillern
Countless viewers watched Friday's royal wedding of Prince William to Catherine Middleton. At the Yahoo! Contributor Network, we asked royal wedding enthusiasts and casual observers for their quick-hit reactions: What were their favorite moments? What was endearing, touching, funny and interesting? Below is a sampling of their thoughts.

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'Does it fit?'

Royal wedding watcher Martha Fry roused her kids -- ages 16, 14, and 12 -- at 4 a.m. ("an hour that should only be experienced once per day," she writes) to share in William and Kate's nuptials.

Of particular curiosity to Martha Fry was the "who's who" of former flames in attendance: "One of the interesting aspects of the guest list is that it included former beaus of Kate's (Rupert Finch and Willem Marx) as well as women who once dated William (including Jecca Craig, Arabella Musgrave, and Rose Farquhar)."

What about nervous moments?

"With William and Kate, I feared [a glitch] had come when William tried to slip the ring on Catherine's finger in the single ring ceremony," she writes. "He seemed to be struggling, as my 12-year-old asked, aghast, 'Does it fit?' Ultimately, William pushed the ring over that pesky knuckle and averted disaster." Read more here.

Best and worst dressed

British celebrities Victoria Beckham and Samantha Cameron (wife of Prime Minister David Cameron) added some stunning and sexy haute couture to the day's events, says viewer Ashley Mott: "Beckham cut a sexy, sleek image in the wedding audience at Westminster Abbey. Posh's black Philip Treacy hat, slick-backed hair extension ponytail, scintillating smoky eye makeup, custom Louboutin heels, and flowing dark dress from her clothing line easily made her the best dressed woman who was not a member of the royal family."

But the hats were overkill for some, writes Mott: "Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie wore enough hat for themselves and a couple of Samantha Camerons all at one time. While both girl's dresses were lovely, in particular Beatrice's, the overall look was tarnished with overkill headgear." Read more here.

Historic 'double kiss' on the balcony

Like every other minute detail, the couple's first public kiss as duke and duchess was scheduled precisely on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.

But, writes Lori May, "viewers couldn't have anticipated a 'double kiss,' with one brief but affectionate kiss sending the crowd of citizens and tourists into cheers only to be followed by another, slightly longer, and even more affectionate second kiss. It seems that Prince William and his bride will truly be the beginning of many historical changes in the British monarchy." Read more here.

Ceremony had a different feel than William's parents'

Heidi McDonald compared the altar behavior of Kate on Friday with Diana from 1981. Unlike a lip-biting, glance-shifting Diana, Kate was more at ease.

Writes McDonald: "Charles and Diana barely looked at each other during their ceremony, and, she was so nervous she messed up his name and kept biting her lower lip. In this ceremony, the way the couple looked at each other said everything, and they were both the very picture of poise. Here was a couple, clearly happy, clearly with a very deep connection to each other. The moment I'll most remember occurred during the homily after the priest said, 'the decision you have both made today,' when they gave each other a look that spoke of love, excitement, and a tiny bit of whimsy." Read more here.

Lip-readers interpret for the rest of us

Prince Harry added some pizazz when Kate started her way down the aisle. Sylvie Branch writes that, according to lip readers, the best man informed the groom about his bride-to-be: "I loved the excitement Prince Harry exuded at the altar. After turning around to take a peek at Kate, he turned to Prince William and apparently said, 'Right, here she is now.' At least that's what lip readers have deciphered. I like to think it was more like, 'Whoa, wait till you see Kate.' " Read more here.

First look at his bride

Royal wedding blogger William Browning's favorite bit included an intimate moment with the groom and his best man, Prince Harry.

"Prince William didn't see the wedding dress his bride was wearing until she stood next to him at the altar. His back was towards her so he couldn't see what she looked like," writes Browning. "The best man, Prince Harry, turned around to look and offered his commentary. A few moments later, Prince William leaned down to say a few things to his bride. There are photos of Middleton beaming at whatever her husband said. Shortly thereafter, her father was also smiling." Read more here.

'God Save the Queen'

Your nationality -- British, American or otherwise -- doesn't matter when you're listening to 'God Save the Queen," which was sung near the end of the ceremony, writes Todd Pheifer, who noted something interesting:

"[I]t is impressive to hear and see the singing of the national anthem of 'God Save the Queen.' Watching this on television or the Internet can't begin to capture what it must sound like in that building or in the surrounding areas. It obviously makes sense why this would happen, but I couldn't help notice that the Queen herself was not singing the song along with the rest of the crowd." Read more here.

Published by Tim Skillern

I am the director of news-editorial for Yahoo! Contributor Network on Yahoo! News. Before that, I was a videographer, copy editor and/or sportswriter for the Rocky Mountain News, the Boulder Daily Camera and...  View profile

2 Comments

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  • Lori May4/29/2011

    Great quotes! Thank you so much for including me among all these interesting, witty and observant contributors! :D

  • Steven Bryan4/29/2011

    Martha's kids have an eye for detail...I was wondering, too, if William was going to give Kate a bruise on her ring finger.

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