IT was always going to be a bit different. With Hollywood A-listers in attendance and a gospel choir waiting in the wings, the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle was always going to veer away from previous Royal marriage ceremonies.

Even so, it was truly remarkable to witness some of the scenes as the new Duke and Duchess of Sussex tied the knot on Saturday afternoon.

Who would have thought that the Royal family, such a traditional and conservative institution, would be at the vanguard of portraying the United Kingdom as such a progressive, multicultural nation?

As if Megan’s status as a mixed-race American divorcee was not sufficient proof of the monarchy’s willingness to embrace diversity, Saturday’s ceremony contained features that would have surely have been shunned a decade or two ago.

From Sheku Kanneh-Mason’s powerful cello solo to Bishop Michael Curry’s emotional address, which contained quotes from Dr Martin Luther King, this was a wedding service that celebrated the new Duchess of Sussex’s black American roots.

With a prominent role for the former Bishop of Durham, Justin Welby, it also contained elements that would have been more familiar to regular Royal observers, and struck exactly the right balance between the past, present and future.

We wish the new Duke and Duchess of Sussex all the best for their married life together, and commend them for the way in which they used their wedding service to celebrate the best of British life.