It will be the society wedding of the year, with King Charles and Queen Camilla headlining a regal guest list for their nephew Peter Phillips‘s wedding to NHS nurse Harriet Sperling.
The ceremony next Saturday at All Saints’ Church in Cirencester is being described as an ‘intimate family affair’ in contrast to other major royal weddings with the couple forgoing traditional elements like a carriage procession.
There will also be an absence of some high-profile royals, most notably Prince Harry, the Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle, and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and his family, following his fall from grace.
But it still promises to be a stately gathering, with the Prince and Princess of Wales forming a central part of the elaborate celebrations along with their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
But as preparations get underway for next week’s ‘low key’ royal wedding, dark clouds are hanging over it linked to Ms Sperling’s previous marriage to fitness instructor Antonio St John Sperling, 44, who is known as Dino.
A source told the Daily Mail: ‘He’s not very happy about how he’s been portrayed by Harriett and feels that he’s been completely written out of the narrative by her.
‘She’s spoken in the past about struggling as a single mother, but Dino has tried to hold out the olive branch many times over the past few years to her and her family. But they’ve rejected any of his offers for help.’
The source added: ‘Harriet has landed in the big time. She’s marrying into the Royal Family and will never have to worry about money or paying a bill ever again. It’s not been like that for Dino, he’s struggled for a long time both financially and emotionally. He’s being made out to the bad guy by her and that’s simply not true.
Peter Phillips, who split with his ex-wife Autumn in 2021, and Harriet Sperling will tie the knot in a private ceremony at All Saints Church in Kemble, Cirencester, next Saturday – on June 6
When Peter and Harriet marry, it will be the Royal Family’s second ‘blended family’, after Princess Beatrice married financier Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, who already had a young son. Harriet has a daughter, Georgina, who was seen this year at the royal Easter Sunday service in Windsor alongside Peter’s daughters Savannah and Isla Phillips
Much talk has been about who won’t be at Peter and Harriet’s wedding, Harry and Megan, Andrew and Fergie, but neither will Harriet’s ex-husband, fitness instructor Antonio Sperling
‘She now thinks she’s having the final say but it’s not right to say that only Dino was responsible for the breakdown of their marriage. It’d be fairer to say that both of them were to blame.’
The couple have a daughter, Georgina, 13, who has said to have grown close to Peter’s daughters from his first marriage, Savannah, 15, and Isla, 14, whom he shares with his ex-wife, Autumn Kelly.
But a source revealed that Dino has not had any ‘meaningful’ contact with Georgina for around four years.
The source added: ‘It’s been mental torture for him. Dino has reached out to try and establish a better relationship with Georgina many times but there’s been no interest.
‘Her [Harriet’s] part in what led to the breakdown of their marriage is being forgotten. He’s tried to make peace many times for the sake of his daughter.’
But despite his personal anguish, the source revealed that Dino is also happy for his ex-wife.
The source said: ‘She’s going to be a part of one of the world’s most powerful families and he wishes her and Peter all the best. But a lot went on between them, their marriage ended very acrimoniously, and he hasn’t really got closure on all that and his troubled relationship with his father.’
Harriet and Dino are believed to have married in 2010.
His father, Domenico Di Martino, 80, previously told the Daily Mail that he has not spoken to his son for almost 25 years after he separated from his wife and Dino’s mother Sonia.
He was not invited to his and Harriet’s wedding and has never met his granddaughter, Georgina.
Mr Di Martino said: ‘I know he got married to Harriet but that only lasted around two years and then he lost his wife and daughter. When I left his mother, it was hard for him, and he never recovered from that.
‘He was angry and broken and that affected his marriage. I heard from people that he wasn’t happy in the marriage, not because of Harriet but because he wasn’t happy in himself. He never got over the pain of me leaving his mother.’
But despite the emotional controversy, next week’s royal event of the year is expected to be a spectacular occasion, nonetheless.
All Saints‘ Church, where the ceremony takes place, is set in the heart of the Cotswolds, and its spire, which was built in 1824, can be seen for miles around.
Peter Phillips, 48, and Harriet Sperling, 45, announced their engagement in August 2025, just over a year after making their relationship public at the Badminton Horse Trials in May 2024.
The nuptials next weekend at All Saints Church in Kemble is expected to be a more intimate affair than Phillips’s first wedding, which was held in St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle
All Saints’ Church (pictured), where the ceremony takes place, is set in the heart of the Cotswolds, and its spire, which was built in 1824, can be seen for miles around
The seriousness of their romance was made plain when Ms Sperling made her carriage debut in the royal procession at Royal Ascot in June 2025.
Ms Sperling, a devout Christian, grew up in the village of South Cerney, in Gloucestershire – about 15 minutes’ drive from the church. The couple now live in their own residence on the Princess Royal’s vast Gatcombe Park estate, which is also close by.
Ms Sperling works as a children’s nurse for the NHS and is described in her professional biography as being ‘passionate about early brain development in babies and seeing children thrive’.
In 2010, she was part of a specialist medical team credited with helping save the life of a critically ill baby struck down by a deadly virus at just three weeks old.
Last year, Ms Sperling spoke candidly about the difficulties of raising her daughter on her own while finding comfort in her faith, in an article she wrote for Christian magazine Woman Alive.
She wrote: ‘This extraordinary bond between a single mother and her daughter, marked by a mix of joy, challenges and unwavering love, is a testament to the strength of the human spirit.
‘It’s a reminder that sometimes, when we think “we have nothing”, we actually have everything we need.
‘In the laughter, tears, and quiet moments of connection, we find the essence of what it means to love and be loved unconditionally.’
However, there is something of a cloud hanging over the couple’s big day with friends of Harriet’s ex husband claiming that he is not happy with the way their marriage broke down
The ceremony is expected to be more low-key than Peter Phillips’s first wedding, which was held in St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.
Queen Elizabeth was among 300 guests at the hour-long ceremony, after which the couple were taken by horse-drawn carriage to a reception and dance at Frogmore House, where Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were later to set up home.
The couple were paid £500,000 by Hello! Magazine for an interview and photographs ahead of the wedding, causing concern among royal circles at their attempts to monetise the event.
