ROYAL WEDDING TIMELINE
Friday, April 29 (all times PST)
12:15 a.m. - Guests begin arriving at the Great North Door of London's Westminster Abbey.
1:50 a.m. - Governors-general and prime ministers of realm countries, the diplomatic corps, and other distinguished guests arrive at the Abbey.
2:10 a.m. - Prince William and Prince Harry leave Clarence House for Westminster Abbey.
2:15 a.m. - The princes arrive at Westminster Abbey.
2:20 a.m. - Members of foreign royal families arrive at Westminster Abbey from Buckingham Palace.
2:27 a.m. - Kate Middleton's mother, Carole, and brother, James, arrive at the Abbey.
2:30 a.m. - Select members of Britain's royal family arrive at the Abbey.
2:40 a.m. - Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, Prince Philip, leave Buckingham Palace for the Abbey as Prince Andrew and daughters Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie; Prince Edward and his wife, Sophie; Princess Anne and her husband Timothy Laurence arrive for the ceremony.
2:42 a.m. - Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, arrive at the Abbey from Clarence House.
2:45 a.m. - The queen and Prince Philip arrive at the Abbey.
2:51 a.m. - The bride, accompanied by her father, Michael, leaves the Goring Hotel for the Abbey.
2:55 a.m. - Bridesmaids and pages arrive at the Abbey from the Goring Hotel.
3 a.m. - The bride arrives. Marriage ceremony, which will be relayed on audio speakers along the wedding route, begins.
4:15 a.m. - William and his new wife emerge from the Abbey and depart in the 1902 State Landau, a carriage, and travel to Buckingham Palace, followed by the queen.
4:30 a.m. - The bride's carriage procession arrives at Buckingham Palace, followed by members of Britain's royal family and other foreign royals 10 minutes later.
4:40 a.m. - Guests for the wedding reception arrive at Buckingham Palace.
5:25 a.m. - William and Middleton, accompanied by the queen and their families, appear on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.
5:30 a.m. - The royals watch a ceremonial flypast from the Royal Air Force and Battle of Britain Memorial Flight before returning inside for the queen's reception for some 600 guests.
Source: The Associated Press
Well-stocked with Union Jacks, plastic tiaras, a commemorative pillow and a wide array of British delicacies, Libby Hinson and her daughter Lizzie, 15, are all set to soak up the most anticipated royal wedding in decades.
After sending husband Rick Hinson off to a spare room, mother and daughter will occupy the master bedroom through the early hours of Friday morning, munching on currant scones, clotted cream and sticky toffee pudding in front of a 42-inch TV screen.
"(Royal weddings) are full of hope - hope for the future," said Libby Hinson, of Tarzana.
The wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton begins Friday morning in London, so royal fans in the San Fernando Valley and throughout Southern California will have to pull all-nighters to watch the festivities live.
Most television networks and cable channels will start coverage at 1 a.m. PST.
"I hope this one goes better," Hinson said, referring to the scandal- and tragedy-plagued relationship of William's parents, Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer. Charles and Diana, who married in 1981, divorced in 1996. Diana died a year later in a car accident in Paris. Charles remarried in 2005.
"(Middleton) seems like a nice girl," Hinson said. "He seems to have his head on straight."
While many Southern Californians will curl up with a blanket in their pajamas to take in all the splendor, other area Anglophiles will celebrate the royal nuptials in traditional British style: with a pint in hand.
"This is something that is absolutely necessary for our mental health right now," said Golriz Moeini, co-owner of the White Harte Pub in Woodland Hills. "All of us are so stressed with natural disasters and wars. This is one happy thing that we have."
What started out as a small get-together for Moeini's friends has now turned into a royal wedding extravaganza complete with a live band, champagne and wedding cake.
Guests are required to don wedding attire. That means jackets for the men and dresses for the ladies. And there might be a seating chart in one section.
The pub, where soccer players go for a pint after the game, is now decorated with Will and Kate flags, banners and photos.
"I am excited, overwhelmed, scared. I want everyone to be happy," Moeini said, sounding like a bride herself.
Moeini and her husband, Pierre, got married on Sept. 6, 1997, the day of Princess Diana's funeral. Moeini thought of canceling the wedding because she was so grief stricken.
When Prince William
A customer looks at merchandise at Oh, Fancy That, a Tarzana shop with British foods and gifts, Tuesday, April 26, 2011. (Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer)
"This is going to be all evened out. I was like `Yes!' I was going to celebrate this wedding," Moeini said. "I'm also a little bit goofy about the royal thing."
At The Mayflower Club, a social club of British expatriates in North Hollywood, at least 50 members are expected to watch a taped showing of the wedding Friday afternoon.
"We are going to make a fuss of it because we should," said Eileen Selby, the group's treasurer.
Selby, who has met Queen Elizabeth II three times, said the group will stop halfway through and have tea.
Other local British establishments have also jumped on the royal wedding bandwagon.
The Fox and Hounds pub in Studio City is hosting a mock bachelor party for William from 9 tonight until 2 a.m. Friday.
Guests can enjoy drink specials, go-go dancers and free cigars.
"We figured we would give him a bachelor party the night before. We sent him an invitation, he has yet to reply," The Fox and Hounds owner and general manager Douglas Milton said with a laugh.
The celebration continues on Friday when the pub will broadcast BBC America, serve wedding cake and $1 champagne specials.
"It is something everyone can agree on," Milton said. "It's a royal wedding, it's a big party."
From midnight to 4 a.m. Friday, The Cat & Fiddle on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood is holding "Tiaras and Pajamas: a Live Royal Wedding Viewing Party."
For $20, ticket holders can sample British fare including mini beef wellingtons, sausage rolls and scones served buffet style.
For local shops specializing in British items, business is brisk. Commemorative items such as teapots, plates, mugs, teaspoons and tea towels featuring Will and Kate are selling quickly.
Jean Karasek, owner of Oh, Fancy That! British Foods, Gifts and More on Ventura Boulevard in Tarzana, said she can't keep wedding-related china on the shelves.
"I sold out three times," Karasek said. "It's been crazy."
She attributes 25 percent of her wedding-related business so far to British ex-pats. The rest are Americans.
"I would have ordered a lot more stock, if I had known I was going to be selling like this," Karasek said.
Royal wedding mania hit Ye Olde King's Head pub in Santa Monica earlier this week.
"The phone has never stopped today," Manager Dusty Kerr said Monday afternoon. "You are about the 250th caller."
Customers can watch wedding replays on the pub's 11 screens on Friday and celebrate with breakfast or afternoon tea.
"It's been such a long time since we had a royal wedding," said Kerr, who hails from Yorkshire. "They make such a lovely couple. This is going to be the new king and queen of England."
Sierra Canyon School freshman Lizzie Hinson said she has been waiting for Prince William to marry Kate Middleton for eight years. She learned about their budding romance at St. Andrews University while reading British tabloids to her mom on family road trips.
Getting a teenager to wake up early is usually a tough thing, but Lizzie says she is excited about getting up at 1 a.m. for the wedding telecast. For years her mother has told her about watching Princess Diana's wedding in 1981 and she doesn't want to miss this one.
"I feel it is a big deal to see the future king and queen of England get married," Lizzie said.
Where to watch
Restaurants, pubs hosting events for the royal wedding:
WHITE HARTE PUB
22456 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills
Tel: 818-224-3822
Live viewing begins about midnight.
Wedding attire.
Guests must call and RSVP
Cost: $25, $50
THE CAT & FIDDLE
6530 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles
Tel: 323-468-3800
Live viewing: Midnight to 4 a.m.
"Tiaras and Pajamas: A Live Royal Wedding Viewing Party"
Cost: $20 (pre-sale tickets strongly encouraged) Tickets can be purchased at www.thecatandfiddle.com.
Friday: Royal wedding viewing throughout the day - showings at noon, 4 p.m., or 8 p.m.
THE FOX AND HOUNDS
11100 Ventura Blvd., Studio City
Tel: 818-763-7837
Tonight: William's Bachelor Party,
9 p.m. to 2 a.m. Friday
Cost: Free
Friday: 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Saturday
Wedding cake, $1 champagne specials
YE OLDE KING'S HEAD
116 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica
Tel: 310-451-1402
Friday: King-size breakfast ($12.95) with complimentary glass of champagne, 9 a.m.
Royal Afternoon Tea ($18.95), noon and 2 p.m.
Performance by Beatles tribute band, 8 p.m.
THE MAYFLOWER CLUB
11110 Victory Blvd., North Hollywood
Tel: 818-769-9805
Friday: 1 p.m.
Royal wedding viewing
Stopping halfway through to have tea.
Cost: $5 per person
BUCHANAN ARMS RESTAURANT
(next to The Piccadilly Shop)
2013 W. Burbank Blvd., Burbank
Tel: 818-845-0692
Saturday: Dinner to celebrate Royal Wedding, 6 p.m.
Special menu includes toffee pudding, Kate Middleton's favorite dessert.
Cost: $20 per person, taking
reservations.
Shops that sell
British goods:
OH, FANCY THAT! BRITISH FOOD, GIFTS & MORE
18399 Ventura Blvd., #11, Tarzana
Tel: 818-996-4405
THE PICCADILLY SHOP
(Next to Buchanan Arms Restaurant)
2011 W. Burbank Blvd., Burbank, CA
Tel: 818-842-2324
FRIAR TUCK SHOPPE
(next to Robin Hood British Pub)
13638 Burbank Blvd., Sherman Oaks
Tel: 818-785-4814
