Billie refuses to sell wedding

Billie Piper is that rare breed - a celebrity who has chosen not to sell her wedding to a glossy magazine.

Ever since Posh and Becks pocketed £1 million for the rights to their lavish nuptials in 1999, a succession of showbiz stars have hawked their big day to the highest bidder.

But Billie was determined not to be one of them and she’s not the first.


Celebs who shun deals

Last week, England cricketer Kevin Pietersen did the same thing when he wed Liberty X singer Jessica Taylor in Castle Combe, Wiltshire.

The couple chose a winter wonderland theme and arranged for villagers to hang white sparkling lights from windows lining the route from the church to the reception at a nearby hotel.

Another celebrity who refused a magazine deal was presenter Ant McPartlin.

The star - one half of TV duo Ant and Dec - turned down a £1 million pay-day when he married make-up artist Lisa Armstrong in July 2006.

The happy couple even posed for fans and photographers outside the church in Taplow, Bucks.

"Why would I want to be at the beck and call of some magazine?" Ant said. "I’d rather just have it private because, with those kind of deals, you lose control and it stops being your day. And it’s always got to be our day.

"The truth is, we’re very lucky that Dec and me get paid very well for what we do. So I would certainly never do it for the money."


Stars who cash in

But most celebrities are happy to take the money, even if it means guests are banned from taking photographs and burly minders are required to hide the bride - and her dress - from public view in order to protect the exclusive deal.

Liz Hurley and Arun Nayar, Rod Stewart and Penny Lancaster, Eva Longoria and Tony Parker, and footballer Ashley Cole and Cheryl Tweedy, are among the couples who have graced the front pages of the glossies in the past couple of years.

Glamour girl Jordan was reportedly paid over £1.5 million when she got hitched to Peter Andre in September 2005 - the biggest sum yet for a British celebrity wedding.

However, things do not always go to plan.

Catherine Zeta Jones and Michael Douglas famously signed a £1 million deal with OK! magazine to cover their New York nuptials in November 2000 - only for Hello! to ruin the exclusive by publishing their own sneak pictures taken by an undercover photographer.

And theirs was not the only chequebook wedding to end in disaster.

TV presenter Anthea Turner and husband Grant Bovey stood accused of a shameless cash-in over wedding pictures which showed them eating Cadbury’s Snowflake bars.

Anthea was forced to deny that Cadbury’s had sponsored the reception and was left mortified by the negative press.

Former Westlife star Brian McFadden blew the lid on celebrity weddings when he admitted that his big day had been a sham.

He married Kerry Katona in an Irish castle in 2002 but revealed after their divorce: "It wasn’t a real wedding. We were getting married to have a big party and get loads of money for it - and to appear showbiz."

MyVillage, 03rd January