Newbury (England), July 06: Some 200 guests flocked yesterday to one of the finest Victorian mansions in Britain for the wedding of Arsenal striker Thierry Henry to his model girlfriend.
The 25-year-old French international hired out Highclere Castle for his marriage to English model Nicole Merry, his co-star in a Renault Clio car commercial currently on the airwaves in Britain.
The castle -- set in the Berkshire countryside, to the West of London -- was shut to the public for the day. Security was tight as guests, including fellow team players, arrived to enjoy the event.
Henry was tying the knot six days after he scored the golden goal to give France a 1-0 victory over Cameroon in the Confederations Cup final in Paris.
Henry began dating Merry, 22, from London, two years ago. It's believed that he especially asked for her to appear in the Renault commercial, in which she wears his jersey and he goes "Va va voom".



Guests included Henry's former Arsenal teammate now with Chelsea Emmanuel Petit and his wife, and Arsenal skipper Patrick Vieira.



Highclere hosted Queen Elizabeth II and the late Princess Diana in 1992 when its owner, the earl of Carnarvon, held his own nuptials on its carefully manicured grounds.



The earl of Carnarvon's great-grandfather was the man who discovered the tomb of the ancient Egyptian King Tutankhamen in 1922. He died four months later from malaria, sparking the myth of a curse upon the tomb.


Bureau Report