Island swarms with stars for Stella wedding

One of the most-eagerly awaited showbiz weddings of the year was expected to take place today.

Amid tight security and following intense speculation, a bevy of showbiz stars arrived on the Scottish island of Bute for the wedding of designer Stella McCartney to her publisher boyfriend.

Queen of pop Madonna was one of host of celebrities ferried on to the Scottish island’s main town Rothesay along with husband Guy Ritchie and at least one of their children.

Model Kate Moss, rocker Chrissie Hynde, and Coldplay’s Chris Martin were also aboard a CalMac ferry which pulled into Rothesay harbour just after 7.30pm yesterday.

Before boarding the ferry, some of the stars joined locals for a drink in the Station Bar at Wemyss Bay on the mainland.

Earlier yesterday, Hollywood actress Liv Tyler arrived in a chauffeur-driven Jaguar and Gucci boss Tom Ford was also spotted.

Despite the couple remaining tight-lipped over plans for the event, the stringent security arrangements and string of showbiz stars arriving on the island confirmed a wedding was imminent.

But even as journalists swarmed the island, it was not yet clear where the ceremony itself would take place.

It was also unclear last night whether 31-year-old Miss McCartney was on the island although husband-to-be Alasdhair Willis, also 31, was spotted.

It is thought they will be married on the Mull of Kintyre – a favourite haunt of Ms McCartney’s father Paul and her mother the late Linda McCartney – then flown to Mount Stuart for the reception.

It was reported in the Scotsman newspaper that Ms McCartney and her publisher fiance had been granted special dispensation to marry on a beach near her family’s estate on Kintyre.

A permit from the Registrar General for Scotland would mean the couple would not have to publish details of their wedding, it was claimed.

Former Formula 1 racing driver Johnny Dumfries, the seventh Marquis of Bute and owner of Mount Stuart greeted stars as they arrived at the quayside when the stars arrived.

It is thought that he offered Mount Stuart to Miss McCartney, a family friend, as it was only a short helicopter flight from the Mull of Kintyre.

Mount Stuart, a Victorian Gothic stately home and popular tourist attraction, has closed one month early.

Residents who live on the land owned by the Marquis said guards manning entrances and roads to the house had issued them with a pass to allow them into their homes.

One local, who lives on land owned by the marquis, said: “We need to show the pass to these guys anytime we want to get to our house.”

A stream of people carriers brought passengers into the mansion late into last night. A small grass airfield nearby has been freshly cut.

Tight security was visible with guards camping in tents at every entrance to the house.