Prince Harry, Meghan Markle’s Royal Wedding Dubbed Britain’s Biggest PR Event

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s royal wedding is being dubbed as one of Britain’s biggest PR events.

According to Forbes, the couple’s nuptials will bring a boost in tourism and the economy even though it may not be as much compared to when Prince William and Kate Middleton tied the knot in 2011.

Various research organizations believe that the fact that Markle is American ensures that people from the United States will head to the United Kingdom for her wedding. Within the past 12 months, American tourists have grown by up to 17 percent.

Bernard Donoghue, the director of the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions, explained why he believes this is so.

“The combination of Prince Harry’s globe fame, Meghan Markle’s global fame as an actress, her being American, Britain much more being affordable than it was two years ago, really makes for a potent mix. This is the first time an American actress has married a prince since Grace Kelly,” he said (via the New York Post).

The Center for Retail Research also said that Prince Harry and Markle’s wedding on May 19 will have constitutional, emotional, cultural, religious, and behavioral implications in the U.K.

Meanwhile, the couple’s wedding ceremony will be one of the major television events of the year. In 2011, Prince William and Middleton’s nuptials were viewed by over 36 million fans. This year, Prince Harry and Markle’s wedding may match Prince William and Middleton’s 72 million YouTube live-stream views.

Prince Harry and Markle will tie the knot at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle at 12 noon (7 a.m. EDT). A carriage procession will follow at 1 p.m. (8 a.m. EDT). After the couple meets their fans around Windsor, they will head to a lunch reception with the members of the congregation. The gathering will be held at St. George’s Hall and will be hosted by Queen Elizabeth II.

At night, a more intimate celebration will take place. Prince Charles will bring together some of Prince Harry and Markle’s closest family and friends at the Frogmore House.