All year, the media have been abuzz with the news: Britain's highest profile gay couple, Sir Elton John, 58, and his 15-years-younger partner David Furnish, will wed in the UK, Wednesday, December 21, availing themselves of Britain's new Civil Partnership Act. This legislation, allowing British same sex couples to marry, takes effect on December 5. However, couples who want to marry under the act must first post a notification at a registry office, meaning that the ceremonies can't take place until December 21.

Gratefully, the year-long media blitz has been short on exploitative, judgmental, or smug coverage, a restraint Fleet Street tabloids are not normally known for. Nor have the stories been marked by condescension or a wink and nod attitude. Given that this is a UK-based story, reporting in Great Britain and Europe has been far more extensive than in America. Here, in both electronic and print media, coverage has been largely limited to the brief announcement story format, or the Entertainment Tonight, or Access: Hollywood interview sound byte quote.

Instead of obsessing on the same gender nature of the wedding, the media have focused primarily on other aspects of the John-Furnish nuptials. Many stories have expressed amazement that Elton John, who defined flamboyant and over the top for his generation, has planned a small, simple ceremony. The media also seem incredulous that John and Furnish have spurned multi-million dollar offers from publications and networks seeking exclusive wedding coverage.

As with the population at large, the media find change difficult – especially when it contradicts long-held celebrity trademarks or eccentricities. Example: Years after the fact, the media are still trying to get their heads around Madonna 's morphing from ultimate Material Girl into a book-writing Kabbalah Mom.

Even though young journalists weren't yet born in the 1970s, they still embrace that decade's image of Elton John in platform heels, mirrored jackets, and outlandish hats. The media expectation was for a garish, star-studded three-ring circus of a wedding, not unlike Liza Minnelli 's ill-starred third stroll down the celebrity-festooned aisle.

But don't look for Dame Elizabeth Taylor on Michael Jackson's arm at the John-Furnish nuptials. Elton and David's ceremony will be held at their country home near Windsor Castle. Repeatedly, Elton has told the press: “The ceremony will be very private: a small family affair, David 's parents, my parents and the two of us. They'll be our witnesses.”

Last month, to the London Sunday Times, he summed up his and David's wedding this way, “It'll be a brilliant end to a brilliant year for us.”

Explaining the modest, small ceremony, he said, “Out of respect for our parents' support, we want to just keep it small – not to make a big ballyhoo out of the ceremony.

“There will be no honeymoon. There will be a party somewhere, but the day will be very low key, and we'll take our parents to lunch afterwards.”

And don't look for Sir Elton's legendary flamboyance to be manifested in his wedding attire. According to FemaleFirstco.uk, David Furnish's Rocket Man won't be getting married in an outrageous outfit. He's promised his intended to tone it down for the wedding day. Or, as Furnish put it in Britain 's Daily Mail newspaper, “Elton's very extravagant, but I don't think a fancy dress outfit is right for our wedding.”

Even though media giants on both sides of the Atlantic have offered millions to John and Furnish's favorite AIDS charities, in exchange for exclusive wedding coverage, the grooms have said, “Thank you, but no thanks,” to all such offers.

Earlier this year, Elton explained the decision to sky.com, “Our love is sacred to us. It doesn't come with a price tag.”

Page 1 / 2- Next