Billionaire tech mogul Jeff Bezos and former news anchor Lauren Sanchez will celebrate their $20 million Venetian wedding on Friday at a sumptuous, secluded ceremony attended by celebrity friends on an island in Venice’s lagoon.
Described as the “wedding of a century”, the 61-year-old Amazon founder and one of the world’s richest men and his bride-to-be, 55, have welcomed nearly 200 VIPs to Venice for three days of lavish celebrations.
On Thursday night, it was disclosed Bezos, and Sanchez had already married legally ahead of today’s ceremony on San Giorgio Maggiore island. It came as guests, including Kylie Jenner, were forced to take cover from a freak thunderstorm during the couple’s pre-wedding party inside the historic Madonna dell’Orto cloisters.
A-listers Kim Kardashian, Oprah Winfrey, and Orlando Bloom jetted into Italy earlier this week for the nuptials, which come two years after Bezos asked Sanchez to marry him on his $500 million superyacht.
But preparations for the couple’s big day have been far from plain sailing with protesters planning to disrupt the celebrations, even forcing a late venue change.
The tech magnate and his kicked off a three-day wedding celebration on Thursday with guests, including Kim and Khloe Kardashian, Oprah Winfrey, and Orlando Bloom.
Venice, home to the oldest film festival in the world, is used to VIPs whizzing around in speed boats and happily hosted the star-studded nuptials of Hollywood actor George Clooney in 2014.
But Bezos — one of the world’s richest men and founder of a company regularly scrutinised for how it treats its workers — is different.
The festivities have sparked protests from environmentalists and locals who accuse authorities of pandering to the super-rich while the city drowns under tourists.
Bezos and Sanchez will exchange vows at a black-tie ceremony on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore, according to Italian media reports.
[Source: AFP/Daily Mail with rejigged headline]
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