As head of the gas-guzzling Formula One motor racing empire, Bernie Ecclestone is not exactly known for his green credentials.
So it is little surprise that his daughter’s wedding was far from an environmentally friendly affair.
Petra Ecclestone, 22, married businessman James Stunt, 28, on Saturday in a lavish Italian ceremony that racked up a staggering £5million bill - and an equally eye-watering carbon footprint.
Almost every element of the day was flown or shipped from abroad, including thousands of white roses from France, tables and chairs from Britain, a Rolls-Royce from the U.S. and luxury portable toilets from a firm in London - which will also transport the waste back to the UK.
And for five days before the ceremony, an energy-intensive air conditioning unit was running at full blast inside the 1,000 square metre marquee to ensure the temperature was just right.
Despite the wedding taking place in Tuscany, a region renowned for its magnificent food, a team of 100 chefs was brought over from France.
The 20-member Tenebrae Choir and an 18-piece string section from the Royal Philharmonic were also flown in from the UK, with three cellos requiring their own seats on the planes.
Meanwhile, guests including Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie and socialite Paris Hilton stayed 30 miles away in three hotels booked for the wedding party - necessitating a fleet of people carriers to transport them to and from the venue.
The celebrations were rounded off at midnight by a £100,000 15-minute fireworks display, with a helicopter circling to capture it all on film for the newlyweds.
A worker said: “I’ve worked at hundreds of weddings but I’ve never known one as over the top as this. Nothing was left to chance and it was very stage-managed. I don’t think it flowed at all.
“The amount of money spent was vulgar and the cost to the environment too has not been considered at all.
“Hardly anything was sourced locally, everything was flown in or shipped and it was all quite ridiculous.”
The setting for the wedding was 15th century Odescalchi Castle, also chosen by Hollywood stars Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes for their 2006 nuptials, which cost a relatively modest £1million.
Wearing an £80,000 Vera Wang couture gown, diamond tiara and earrings, aspiring handbag designer Miss Ecclestone arrived ten minutes late with her 80-year-old father, whose £2.5billion fortune funded the decadent affair.
The event also featured some of the world’s biggest music acts, including Eric Clapton, Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli and American pop group Black Eyed Peas.
WHERE THE MONEY WENT
£310 000 to hire Odescalchi Castle
£400 000 in security costs
£250 000 for Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
£800 000 on champagne and wine
£100 000 for bridesmaids’ gowns
£250 000 for hotel rooms for guests - Daily Mail