Royal weddings: Expert hits out at 'scandalous' cost for taxpayer

For many, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s nuptials was one of the highlights of 2018. The wedding service was watched by 1.9 billion people worldwide and A-list celebrities filled the pews at Windsor’s St George’s Chapel. After Harry and Meghan tied the knot, the royal couple and 200 guests partied into the night at Frogmore House. Details of their celebrations have emerged, including revelations about Elba’s DJ setlist.

At the royal wedding afterparty, Hollywood star George Clooney was reported to have been the last man on the dancefloor after whirling around with Meghan and Kate Middleton. 

Sir Elton John allegedly performed Your Song, Tiny Dancer, and Circle of Life, from the classic Disney film The Lion King. 

London-born star Elba was put in charge of DJing the reception and was given a selection of songs to play by Meghan.

The actor, who notably starred in the BBC’s Luther and Marvel’s comic book flick Thor, remained tightlipped about the music that was selected. 

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While Elba tried to keep the majority of the set-list a secret between Meghan, Harry and their guests, a few songs were revealed. 

His performance at the 2018 wedding reception was far from the star’s first outing as a DJ.

Shortly after the nuptials, Elba revealed that his first gig was alongside his uncle when he was around 14 or 15 years old.

From there, he spent decades as a DJ and was performing in New York, shortly before his first big break as Stringer Bell in crime drama The Wire.

During an interview on BBC Radio 1Xtra last year, Elba revealed that Meghan handed him “a playlist with some bare tunes on it”.

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He didn’t name specific tracks but shared that there were “some West Coast” songs on the set list before adding: “That’s all I’m saying.”

When pressed about whether famous rappers including Snoop Dog, Tupac or Dr Dre featured, Elba refused to answer.

He said: “I’m not going to put their business out like that, that’s not fair. Ask Meghan and Harry.”

One song he did confirm was Whitney Houston’s 1987 song I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me).

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The choice wasn’t considered too surprising for fans of Meghan as she had previously spoken out about her connection to the hit in the past.

In 2017, she told Lifestyle magazine: “When I’m happy, I listen to Whitney Houston’s I Wanna Dance with Somebody, it’s such a good song.”

Elba revealed that Harry asked him to play at the royal wedding reception after they had “hung out a couple of times through his dad”.

The star received financial assistance from The Prince’s Trust when he was “a young actor” and later became an ambassador for the charity.

In 2018, Elba told The Ellen Show that he thought Harry was joking when he asked him to DJ for them after the royal attended a few of his performances.

Many of the songs played that night remain unknown and Meghan’s chosen music platform is also unclear.

However, the royal couple are known to favour Spotify after a deal reportedly worth £18million was brokered between them.

Their future podcast series Archewell Audio, which is part of their larger charitable organisation of the same name, was teased on the platform this week. 

Meghan and Harry revealed the project would focus on “meeting people and hearing their stories”.

Elba is also due to make a landmark appearance in the show Idris Elba Meets Paul McCartney, which airs at 9.20pm Saturday on BBC One.

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