Taylor Swift’s wedding – a multi-day extravaganza kicking off in earnest at New York’s Madison Square Garden arena later today – is the most American event anyone could have ever dreamed of. Many might be curious as to why Swift, a billionaire with unlimited access to any wedding venue in the world, would choose such a Gatsby-esque approach rather than opting for a private affair with close friends and family. But Swift is known for her marketing genius, and her wedding is no exception.
Swift couldn’t have timed her wedding to the American football player Travis Kelce better than to take place on the 250th anniversary weekend of the declaration of American independence. While the official ‘Freedom 250’ celebrations have struggled to capture the nation, all eyes are on the happy couple and the love story which signifies so much about US culture. The multi-Super Bowl-winning quarterback marries the biggest pop star of the 21st century. No matter our politics, one thing unites Americans – they all love love.
Britain, of course, invented the royal wedding. We have the genuine article: medieval abbeys, actual castles, hereditary monarchs. When Prince William married Kate Middleton in 2011, Westminster Abbey had already witnessed nearly a thousand years of British history. Generations of kings and queens had been crowned and buried there. The building itself was older than the US.
