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William and Kate will smash glass at wedding

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The wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton will take place at Westminster Abbey amid the normal pomp of the Anglican ceremony.

But this time there will be crucial differences - including a traditional Jewish wedding practice.

Buckingham Palace is keen that the wedding takes account of the multi-cultural nature of modern British society, so Muslim, Hindu and Jewish traditions will be incorporated into the Church of England ceremony.

According to detailed wedding plans, due to be released on Sunday, a small amount of mehendi or turmeric, paste will be smeared on Kate's hand in a Muslim pre-wedding ritual. The couple will then offer each other a morsel of food to express mutual love and affection in accordance with the Hindu practice, and then William will smash a glass with his foot as at Jewish weddings.

Buckingham Palace spokesperson Esther Calthorpe-Watts said: "They want everyone to feel a part of the wedding. And while, religiously, the ceremony will be completely Anglican in nature, they felt it appropriate to include these small gestures towards other faiths.

"If the congregation at the Abbey want to wish the happy couple 'mazeltov' we will be very happy but this will be totally optional."

NB Purim Spiel alert... As keen-eyed readers will have gathered, this was a joke to mark this weekend's Purim festival. All too plausible: even St James' Palace was taken in. We still think it's a good idea...

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