Last year, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their engagement, kicking off a flurry of excitement from the British public - and a few grumbles from various family members and celebrities who found out they weren't invited to the big day.
Their wedding is due to take place on May 19th this year, and will be held at St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle. Usually, these kinds of ceremonies are exclusive to a very specific guest list, leaving the rest of the world to enjoy the proceedings on TV (and it's on a Saturday, so you don't have to worry about missing it).
However, this time around, the royal bride and groom have decided to do something a little bit different, and have set aside a few seats in the chapel for members of the public.
An official statement released by Kensington Palace said that Harry and Meghan had made the decision to expand their guest list, as they wanted "members of the public to feel part of the celebrations too". The statement went on to say that, "This wedding, like all weddings, will be a moment of fun and joy that will reflect the characters and values of the bride and groom" - so guests will be expected to be on their very best behavior.
In total, the couple will be inviting 2,640 extra people to the proceedings. However, as the capacity of the chapel is approximately 800 people, the additional guests won't be present for the service itself - but they will get to watch the arrivals of the wedding party and the official attendees, as well as the carriage procession after the service.
Unfortunately, if you do want a shot at getting an invite, you need to fit in with some pretty specific criteria.
There are five groups of people who are going to be invited. So, if you want to come, you need to be...
1. One of 1,200 civilians chosen "from every corner of the United Kingdom. The couple has asked that the people chosen are from a broad range of backgrounds and ages, including young people who have shown strong leadership, and those who have served their communities."
2. One of 200 people who represent or are involved with "a range of charities and organizations which Prince Harry and Ms. Markle have a close association with."
3. One of 100 pupils from schools in the local area.
4. One of 610 "Windsor Castle community members."
5. One of the 530 members of "the Royal Households and Crown Estate."
In all likelihood, then, you probably won't score a golden ticket to the big day. However, in charming British tradition, there will most likely be street parties going on up and down the UK - so at least we won't be completely left out of the celebrations.
According to the palace, the official ceremony will begin at 12 pm London time, and will be followed by a carriage procession one hour later around Windsor Town. We can't wait for the big day!
