Nearly 200yrs after Lord Liverpool, British PM Johnson marries in office

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday afternoon married his fiancée, Carrie Symonds, in a “small ceremony” at the Roman Catholic Westminster Cathedral in London, a Downing Street spokesman said on Sunday.

Johnson becomes the first British prime minister in nearly 200 years to marry in office. The last British PM to marry in office was Lord Liverpool, who married Lady Mary Chester on September 24, 1822, after the death of his first wife, Louisa.

The secretly-planned wedding took place in front of a small group of friends and family. According to The Mail on Sunday, 30 guests were invited to the ceremony at short notice. Under current Covid restrictions in England, 30 is the maximum number of guests allowed at weddings.

A small number of church officials were involved in preparations for the Catholic ceremony, which was officiated by Father Daniel Humphreys.

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The Sun had earlier reported that Johnson would marry Symonds in July 2022 after sending save-the-date cards to family and friends. It said the save-the-date cards were for Saturday, July 30, but that exactly where the couple would celebrate the occasion was unknown.

Johnson, 56, and Symonds, 33, were the first unmarried couple to live in Downing Street. The couple moved there in July 2019, and Johnson reportedly proposed on holiday on the Caribbean Island of Mustique.

The couple, who have a son together, one-year-old Wilfred, announced their engagement in February 2020.

Johnson has been married twice before, but it is Symonds’ first marriage. Johnson is reported to have at least five other children from previous relationships.

The Downing Street spokesman said the couple would celebrate again with family and friends next summer, with their honeymoon also delayed until then.

The prime minister has already returned to work.

Carrie Symonds, an environmental advocate, is the daughter of one of the founders of the Independent newspaper, Matthew Symonds, and newspaper lawyer Josephine McAffee. She grew up in south-west London before going on to study Art History and Theatre Studies at Warwick University.