Queen Elizabeth’s Cousin First In The Royal Family To Have Gay Wedding
It's a year of royal wedding firsts. Following Meghan Markle's unconventional entrance into the royal family, their first ever gay wedding is on the horizon.
A Real Royal First
Princess Eugenie will get married on Oct. 12 but before that, another member of the royal family will walk down the aisle, making history in the process.
Lord Ivar Mountbatten, cousin to The Queen herself, will become the first royal to enter into a same-sex marriage when he weds long-term partner James Coyle.
In a modern move fitting such an event, Lord Ivar will be given away by his ex-wife Penny whom he has three daughters, Ella, 22, Alix, 20, and Luli, 15.
Lord Ivar opened up about his big day explaining he wanted to do it for his partner, who has had a more difficult upbringing and needs the stability.
"I really wanted to do it for James. He hasn't been married. ... I think it's important for him," he gushed.
The nuptials will take place later this summer in the private chapel on Lord Ivar's country estate in Devon. He explained that his kids are all very excited about their father's big day, particularly as it was their idea, to begin with.
A Very Modern Marriage
They're also completely nonplussed about the fact that he's marrying a man in a ceremony Lord Ivar noted would be small and intimate.
As for Penny, she's hugely supportive of her openly bisexual ex-husband, noting that he's been so much happier since coming out publicly.
"By keeping his sexuality a secret it was really quite tormenting him. Now it's out he's a completely different person. Everybody says they've never seen him happier," she said.
The wedding itself has the blessing of the entire royal family, with Lord Ivar counting Prince Edward as one of his best friends. He's even godparent to Edward's daughter, Louise.
Lord Ivar came out in 2016, several years after he and Penny split up. He explained that his marriage to Coyle will be a modern arrangement and that neither man proposed, but rather just accepted it was the right move for them.
He admitted that he could never tell his parents about his sexuality, although, Penny knew before they married. Although Lord Ivar didn't ever think he'd marry a man, he's thrilled at how his life has turned out.
The happy news comes just a month after Prince Harry married Meghan Markle, a biracial American divorcee, in their own historic royal wedding at Windsor Castle.
