As the new Duke and Duchess of Sussex began married life, a major clean-up operation was under way in Windsor after a wedding that wove royal tradition and African-American heritage into a modern spectacle, winning praise from many quarters. Barriers were being taken down and trucks and lorries lined the streets of the Berkshire town as international TV networks packed up and rubbish collectors moved in.

An estimated 100,000 people had descended on the town for the ceremony to catch a glimpse of the new duchess in her Givenchy wedding gown with five-metre train and veil held firmly by the Queen Mary diamond tiara, as she and Harry rode by open top landau through the streets to Windsor Castle. Inside the 15th-century St George’s Chapel, A-List celebrities including Oprah Winfrey, Serena Williams, and George and Amal Clooney sat alongside senior royals, including the Queen and Prince Philip. The bride’s mother, Doria Ragland, 61, a yoga instructor and social worker from Los Angeles, was her sole relative present.

The service, one undoubted highlight of which was the rousing address by the Most Rev Michael Curry, the first black presiding bishop of the US Episcopal Church, was watched by a TV audience of hundreds of millions across the globe. The 600 guests enjoyed a lunchtime reception, hosted by the Queen at Windsor Castle, at which Sir Elton John performed.(theguardian)…[+]