Hundreds of Swedes gathered under the hot summer sun on Saturday to watch former reality show starlet Sofia Hellqvist become a real-life princess when she married Prince Carl Philip in a lavish Stockholm wedding.
Ms. Hellqvist, an elegant brunette, is a 30-year-old commoner known for her infectious gap-toothed smile.
Her fiance, 36-year-old Carl Philip, is the second child of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia and holds the title of Duke of Varmland.
He is third in line to the throne, behind his elder sister Crown Princess Victoria — who also married a commoner — and her three-year-old daughter Princess Estelle. The prince will keep his title thanks to a change of rules in 1980 which also makes Ms. Hellqvist a princess through marriage.
Ms. Hellqvist took part in 2005 in the Swedish reality show ‘Paradise Hotel’, where scantily-clad men and women stay at a luxury resort and compete to be the last contestant voted off the show. — AFP
