There is an intriguing backdrop to today’s royal wedding of the Queen’s grandson Peter Phillips to Canadian PA Autumn Kelly at Windsor Castle.

For after Hello! magazine secured a £500,000 deal with the happy couple, courtiers are nervous about just what role the publication will have at the nuptials.

Normally, for splashing out such a vast sum, the glossy would expect to secure photographs of all the principal figures — in this case, Princess Anne, Prince Philip and the Queen. Should this occur, royal complaints about privacy will begin to sound rather hollow.

Naturally, the magazine is being rather cagey about what access it has obtained. The Marquesa de Varela, the weekly’s legendary fixer who negotiated the Phillips deal, is reluctant to say.

But royal aides have been told there could be something “special” for the magazine. If true, it means the Queen’s permission must have been sought.

One hopes the magazine has better luck than with its 19-page special issue on Peter and Autumn, which insiders say failed to excite readers. (via Daily Mail)