ROME, Nov 19: Actors Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes were married in a medieval castle near Rome on Saturday in a Scientology ceremony attended by a galaxy of Hollywood stars.
With torches burning from the battlements of the 15th-century castle, the couple exchanged vows out of sight of the thousands of onlookers and paparazzi camped outside or perched on window ledges and balconies.
A fireworks display from a castle tower later lit up the sky, winning applause from those who had braved rain to stay to the end.
The bride and groom wore Giorgio Armani, Holmes in an ivory silk crystal-studded gown and Cruise in a dark suit for the ceremony presided by a Scientologist minister and later cut a five-tier white chocolate cake, according to Cruise's publicist, Arnold Robinson.
Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli serenaded the couple at the wedding reception, according to a statement issued by Robinson.
The celebrations, which were estimated to cost over 2 million euros ($2.5 million).
“Entertainment Tonight,” quoting Robinson, said the couple shared their first dance while Fleetwood Mac's “Songbird” played. It also said guests danced past 1 a.m.
Robinson said in a statement the couple officially tied the knot last week.
“As is customary for couples marrying outside of the United States, Cruise and Holmes officialised their marriage in Los Angeles prior to their departure for Italy,” the statement said.
The twice-divorced Cruise is an ardent follower of the church founded by science-fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard.
Holmes, 17 years his junior, was raised a Catholic.
Hollywood stars including Jennifer Lopez and husband Marc Anthony, Will Smith and wife Jada Pinkett and Brooke Shields were among 150 guests in attendance. Local media reported Victoria Beckham arrived at the wedding alone, wearing a black dress and slanted hat, after soccer star husband David was called away to Spain to play for Real Madrid.
Other celebrities who had been due to attend included “Mission: Impossible III” director J.J. Abrams and John Travolta, who shares Cruise's belief in Scientology.
Shields, in a red evening gown, and Lopez, sporting a dusty pink floor-sweeping gown and white fur wrap, were among stars who posed for cameras when they left their hotel in Rome.
'HELLO FROM FAR': Fans in Bracciano, however, saw little more than dark Mercedes with tinted windows whizzing past to a side entrance.
Frenzied excitement in the run-up to the wedding gave away to disappointment among the throngs waiting outside once word spread the wedding was over. Bottles and litter were left behind in a square teeming with hopeful fans earlier in the day.
“I'm really disappointed, they came to have their wedding here and it would have been fair to say at least a little hello from far away,” said Michele Pagano, who had hoped to take pictures with his mobile phone outside the venue.—Reuters
