There is a new wedding template becoming the norm among modern couples: a small, private civil ceremony with just the two of you, a registrar, and maybe a handful of people who matter most — followed weeks later by the celebration you actually planned. No compromise between logistics and vision. Two separate events, each doing exactly what it’s supposed to do.
Dua Lipa and Callum Turner did it as well as anyone. They officially tied the knot on May 31, 2026, in an intimate ceremony at London’s Old Marylebone Town Hall. Then, six days later, they arrived in Sicily for something else entirely: a three-day celebration in Palermo that felt less like a wedding and more like a very well-curated music festival held inside a Baroque palace. The couple had chosen Palermo after holidaying there together the previous summer — a decision that turned out to be one of the most inspired of the entire weekend. Here is everything that happened.
June 5 — Welcome Party
Pre-wedding festivities included a private cocktail reception and tour at the Galleria d’Arte Moderna di Palermo, followed by a soirée at the opulent Palazzo Valguarnera-Gangi. This 18th-century urban palace on Piazza Croce dei Vespri in the historic Kalsa quarter still retains its original rich Rococo interior decoration. It is also the palazzo where Visconti filmed the ballroom scene in The Leopard — a location with serious cultural weight.
Among the décor details: bookshelves styled throughout the space, serving as a nod to how the couple first connected. Dua and Callum discovered they were both reading the same book, Trust by Hernán Díaz, when they ran into each other in Los Angeles — a detail that has since become part of their origin story.
For the welcome party, Dua wore a white sleeveless Bottega Veneta gown with an open back and feathered skirt. Callum opted for a white suit that contrasted with his dark navy Ferragamo for the London ceremony.
Dua and Callum arrived in Sicily ahead of their guests and set up base at the Grand Hotel Villa Igiea — a historic five-star Art Nouveau property on the outskirts of Palermo — which was largely booked out for an estimated 200 guests. Additional guests stayed on yachts anchored in Palermo harbor.
June 6 — Wedding Day
The main ceremony was held at Villa Valguarnera, an 18th-century estate in Bagheria described as “little Versailles” for its grandeur and sea-view gardens.
The Guest List: Among the guests were Donatella Versace, Charli XCX and her husband The 1975 drummer George Daniel, Mark Ronson and his wife Grace Gummer (Meryl Streep’s eldest daughter), singer Olivia Dean, Troye Sivan, Joe Alwyn, and Elton John with David Furnish. Also in attendance were Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker and his wife Sophie, and Chris Stapleton.
Décor: The monumental gardens were dotted with satin-bow-draped chairs, Sicilian sugared almonds, and hand-embroidered handkerchiefs reading “stay mad with me forever” — a nod to local tradition called fazzoletto ricamato.
The Ceremony: Guests gathered in the villa’s gazebo where the couple exchanged vows while Elton John performed “Your Song” on piano. John is a long-term friend and collaborator of Dua’s — the pair worked together on the 2021 hit “Cold Heart” — making his appearance both a flex and a genuinely personal nod to their history.
The Afterparty: DJs Carl Cox, Martin Garrix, David Guetta, and Peggy Gou all performed.
The Budget: The total cost of the Sicilian celebration was reported to be around $1.73 million.
As is tradition for Dua Lipa, the official photo dump will come in its own time, and when it does, the internet will collectively lose its mind. Until then, we are happily living off every guest snap. The feathered Bottega Veneta at Palazzo Gangi alone was enough to make this one of the most talked-about wedding weekends of the year. The two Versace ceremony gowns are still to be fully revealed, and honestly, the anticipation is half the fun. We are watching, we are waiting, and we are absolutely here for every single photo still to come.
