At every wedding, there is always one glamorous guest who risks upstaging the bride.

So it is brave indeed of Kate Middleton to extend an invitation to Victoria Beckham.

The former Spice Girl and her husband, David, are among the celebrities invited to the wedding of Miss Middleton and Prince William at Westminster Abbey on April 29. They were two of the 1,900 guests who found a gold-embossed invitation on their doormat at the weekend.

The Beckhams are invited on account of David's work with Prince William on England's 2018 World Cup bid. The Prince is president of the Football Association and the pair spearheaded the bid at a presentation in Zurich last year.

A spokesman for the footballer declined to confirm the invitation, but sources said the couple had received one. Mrs Beckham, now a fashion designer of note, has stolen the limelight at weddings in the past. In 2006, she arrived for the Italian nuptials of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes in a revealing strapless dress and enormous hat, to the delight of the paparazzi.

While Clarence House insisted that the wedding will not be a celebrity-studded affair, there are plenty of famous names on the list.

They include Ben Fogle, the television presenter, and his wife, Marina, who are personal friends of the Prince and Miss Middleton.

The 1,900-strong guest list includes more than 1,000 friends and family of the Prince and Miss Middleton. There will be 200 members of the Government, Parliament and diplomatic corps. David and Samantha Cameron have been invited to the ceremony and Buckingham Palace reception, while Ed Miliband has received an invitation to the ceremony only. Around 80 representatives of the Prince's charities will also attend.

There was no word from the White House on whether Barack and Michelle Obama have been invited, but it is thought unlikely. As the Prince is not yet heir to the throne, the wedding is not classed as a state occasion and protocol dictates that elected foreign leaders should not expect an invitation.

The Duchess of York is definitely not on the list. A spokesman said she "was never expecting to attend" and plans to be overseas on April 29.

The invitations, with a dress code of "uniform, morning coat or lounge suit", were sent out by first class Royal Mail.

(Read by Renee Haines. Renee Haines is a journalist at the China Daily Website.)

點擊查看更多雙語新聞

(Agencies)