Sultan of Brunei’s daughter, Princess ‘Azemah Ni’matul Bolkiah of Brunei with Prince Bahar ibni Jefri Bolkiah of Brunei. Photo: Instagram.com/@tmski
Princes and princesses– there is no shortage of glamour when it comes to the most hotly-anticipated society weddings of 2023. But whose will be the chicest of them all?
The date is set for Lady Amelia Spencer and her beau, Greg Mallett, who are poised to tie the knot next month (details have been kept under wraps, but South Africa is a likely location), while King Abdullah II and Queen Rania of Jordan could oversee two royal weddings before the year’s end after their son, Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II of Jordan, and daughter, Princess Iman bint Abdullah II, announced their engagements to their respective partners just weeks apart. While some, like Princess Märtha Louise of Norway and Shaman Durek (engaged in summer 2022 after several years together), have had plenty of time to plan, others, like Lady Tamara Conyngham, of Slane Castle, in Ireland, are newly betrothed.
The most controversial is, arguably, the potential wedding of the Marquesa of Griñón and Íñigo Onieva who saw their break-up – and reconciliation – play out in the press. Although there has been no confirmation of a date, Spanish insiders believe wedding bells could soon chime.
Although February has only just arrived, there is already a high bar for high society nuptials: the Sultan of Brunei’s daughter, the beautiful Princess ‘Azemah Ni’matul Bolkiah of Brunei, tied the knot with her first cousin, Prince Bahar ibni Jefri Bolkiah of Brunei, in a week of celebrations last month.
So who will be crowned king and queen of the society weddings 2023? Here are the brides and grooms you need to know.
Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II of Jordan and Rajwa Al Saif
The date for the lavish nuptials of Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II of Jordan and his fiancée, Rajwa Al Saif, is set. The couple, who became engaged in August last year in the bride-to-be’s home of Saudi Arabia, will officially tie the knot on 1 June, 2023. The date holds sentimental value to the Crown Prince and his family as it is just days before the 30th wedding anniversary of his parents, King Abdullah II and Queen Rania of Jordan, who celebrate the milestone on 10 June.
Princess Iman bint Abdullah II and Jameel Alexander Thermiotis
It could be a double wedding year for the Jordanian royal family because Princess Iman bint Abdullah II is also engaged. The king and queen’s eldest daughter is set to tie the knot with her Venezuelan venture capitalist beau, Jameel Alexander Thermiotis. The engagement was announced by proud mother Rania, just weeks before Hussein’s announcement. ‘Congratulations my dearest Iman; your smile has always been a gift of love that I’ve cherished since the day you were born. I wish you and Jameel a life filled with love and laughter,’ the queen wrote online.
Lady Amelia Spencer and Greg Mallett
Lady Amelia, the 30-year-old niece of Diana, Princess of Wales and the daughter of Earl Spencer, will exchange vows with her handsome beau, Greg Mallett, in March. The couple, who recently toasted the opening of Atlantis The Royal in Dubai, became engaged in July 2020. They often celebrate their love on Instagram (Mallett shared a touching tribute to his model fiancée), so there is no doubt their nuptials will be filled with romantic moments sure to make their well-heeled guests swoon.
Lady Tamara Conyngham and Cian Speers
Lady Tamara, 31, daughter of the 8th Marquess Conyngham, is poised to wed Cian Speers at the family’s ancestral seat of Slane Castle, in Ireland. ‘We are delighted to be hosting the wedding in Slane Castle,’ her father, Henry Mountcharles, told the Daily Mail’s Richard Eden. There is no shortage of musical talent who could be brought in to play at the big event – Adam Clayton, the bassist of U2, is Lady Tamara’s godfather, while everyone from Madonna to Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones has played in the grounds of the residence (which this year will host the pop star of the moment, Harry Styles). With the castle’s schedule booked up months in advance, a summer wedding might prove tricky – but far from impossible.
The Hon. Edward Lytton Cobbold and Dr. Helena Meyer-Johann
The Hon. Edward Lytton Cobbold, the heir to what has been called ‘the stately home of Rock ‘n’ Roll’, the Grade II* listed Tudor Gothic manor, Knebworth House, was swept off the market late last year. On 2 December, he announced his engagement to German heiress, Dr. Helena Meyer-Johann, on Instagram saying: ‘Sie Sagte ja!’ which translates from German as: ‘She said, YES!’ Lytton Cobbold is a multi-instrumentalist who previously worked for Live Nation in London as well as in the music business in Sweden before returning home to run the estate alongside his father and mother, the 3rd Baron and Baroness Cobbold, Henry and Martha. Edward, 30, exclusively revealed to Tatler that he proposed to Helena, 28, at her estate not far from Berlin in Brandenburg, east Germany. The couple are spoilt for choice when it comes to stately wedding venues.
Lara Johnson-Wheeler and Patrick Mueller
Lara Johnson-Wheeler, the daughter of Boris Johnson, announced her engagement to her long-term boyfriend, the German art director Patrick Mueller, in January. The date has not been set but, whenever it takes place, the wedding will be a particularly moving occasion as Mueller has also reportedly been battling cancer, according to the Daily Mail’s Richard Eden, and has now been given a final clear scan.
Louisa Wentworth-Stanley and Ludovic de Ferranti
It’s only been a couple of years since the Wentworth-Stanley family gathered to celebrate the marriage of Harry to his long-term girlfriend, Cressida Bonas, but it seems there will soon be another wedding to plan after his younger sister, Louisa, announced her engagement in January. Louisa – the 29-year-old daughter of Marchioness of Milford Haven (a former Tatler social editor) and her first husband, Lloyd’s List underwriter Nicholas Philip Wentworth-Stanley – is poised to wed her beau, Ludovic de Ferranti, 32. It would be a quick turnaround, but it is possible the couple could plan a wedding for later in 2023.
Jack Mann and Isabella Clark
Jack Mann, Prince Harry’s fellow polo-player and one of his most trusted friends, is reportedly getting married to osteopath Isabella Clark, though neither party has confirmed the engagement publicly. Educated at Stowe, Mann was reportedly a Sandhurst contemporary of Prince Harry and served in the Blues and Royals in Iraq and Afghanistan before moving into the private security industry. The two are said to have become friends while they were at the Royal Military Academy together. Mann was also one of Prince Harry’s ushers on his wedding day. Could the Duke and Duchess of Sussex make an appearance at his nuptials later this year?
The Marquesa of Griñón and Íñigo Onieva
It was the split that rocked Spanish high society: Tamara Falcó, the glamorous Marquesa of Griñón and châtelaine of El Rincón palace, outside Madrid, hit pause on her engagement to dashing investor Íñigo Onieva after a video emerged of him kissing another woman. Now, however, there is a chance that the couple could exchange vows after they publicly reconciled at the start of the year. Will it be too soon for a Spanish society wedding? Only time will tell.
Princess Märtha Louise of Norway and Shaman Durek
After an engagement announcement last summer, it is entirely possible Princess Märtha Louise of Norway will tie the knot with her beau of several years, Shaman Durek. However, it might not be the grand royal occasion one would expect. In November, Märtha Louise, the daughter of King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway, announced her decision to withdraw from official royal duties to focus on alternative medicine with her self-described ‘shaman’ fiancé, raising questions over what royal pomp and ceremony a wedding might entail.
Princess Alexandra of Luxembourg and Nicholas Bagoy
The royal household of Luxembourg announced in November 2022 that sixth-in-line to the throne, Princess Alexandra, 31, is engaged. The Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of Luxembourg revealed that their only daughter is set to marry Nicholas Bagoy, 33, a Paris-based businessman. No date has been set for the nuptials but royal watchers will keeping their fingers crossed that they could see Alexandra walk down the aisle in 2023 – perhaps wearing one of Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg’s incredible tiaras.
Prince Ludwig of Bavaria and Sophie-Alexandra Evekink
Royal heartthrob Prince Ludwig of Bavaria proposed to Sophie-Alexandra Evekink, then an Oxford PhD student, with a glittering emerald ring last summer. The couple have the blessing of the royal’s father, Prince Luitpold, who told the German press: ‘Ludwig made a good choice. My future daughter-in-law is a very intelligent and educated woman.’ Prince Ludwig, great-great grandson of the last King of Bavaria, prefers to stay out of the public eye, but the royal court might choose to release images from the wedding day.
Originally published on Tatler.com
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