In the 16th century chateau, the two families, their very closest family friends, including Ronan and Yvonne Keating, Ian Galvin and Karen Millen, and two Irish priests were ensconced in a wing of more than 30 elegant drawing rooms and bed chambers.

The prenuptial evening consisted of a very pleasant dinner as Miriam and Bertie relaxed with their family on the eve of the wedding.

Bouquets of lilacs and roses and candles bedecked the church as hundreds of friends and relatives gathered. However, the marquee blocking the entrance to the church wasn't the only shadow passed over the wedding by the massively publicised Hello! deal.

The bridal party arrived at the Church of St Peter and St Paul in the pretty village of Gallardon to a rousing chorus of booing and jeering from the small crowd of mostly locals who had gathered there.

The reaction, which must have been very upsetting for Georgina and Nicky, was a culmination of a day of bad feeling in the sleepy village near Paris.

After a week of high-handed behaviour by police, security and wedding organisers, locals had clearly had enough of being herded around the streets of their own town.

The final straw seemed to be when the wedding party began arriving in blacked-out Mercs and people-carriers to drive into the canopy that covered the entrance to the church.

Disappointed locals booed and jeered, with one local woman shouting personal abuse at Georgina.

Guests began arriving at the church at around 2pm in a fleet of coaches. As well as Ronan Keating and his wife Yvonne, guests included a predicted roll call of those celebrities familiar to viewers of reality TV talent shows.

Nadine Coyle, who along with Ronan Keating was singing at the ceremony, arrived arm-in-arm with Girls Aloud bandmate Kimberley Walsh. Other "celeb" guests included Paul Goldin, Brian Robson, Bill Hughes, Louis Copeland, Popstars judge Niki Chapman and of course all of Westlife.

The entire village of Gallardon had become a high-security zone from early in the day as the Ahern and Byrne families continued to do their utmost to protect Hello! magazine's substantial investment in the wedding.

The postcard-perfect village square was marred somewhat by the presence of the large canvas tents in front of the historical church, which has been closed to the ordinary praying and sightseeing public in the run-up to the big day.

Protecting the happy couple from their public was the order of the day. Specifically, security officials were concerned with ensuring no one got pictures of Georgina's Valentino-style 1950s gown, by Irish fashion designer Synan O'Mahony, which would have compromised the Hello! exclusivity deal as much as it would have appeased the Irish public.

During the ceremony itself, Ronan Keating sang I Love the Way You Love Me while Cathy Vard sang the Ave Maria. Girls Aloud star Nadine Coyle sang Sting's Field of Gold and the Celine Dion song Because You Love Me.

Other participants in the wedding included the two mothers who brought up the gifts, and Nicky's young brother Adam, who was best man. The singer also had four friends as "Bestest Men".

The groom and groomsmen entered to the strain of Bach's Orchestral Suite No 3 in D Major. The bridesmaids, wearing lilac gowns, came in to the tune of Waltz of the Flowers from the Nutcracker while the bride, escorted by the Taoiseach, entered to the strains of Wagner's Bridal March. The gospel reading was the story of the Wedding Feast at Cana.

Outside the church was a very different story as furious locals raged about the fact that their village had been hijacked. As the Taoiseach and the bridal party left, there was more and louder booing and scuffles. The guests then whizzed off to enjoy a meal of salmon and pork in the high summer heat.

Really though, all the high-profile hassle aside, it was like any other Irish wedding, with lots of ill-advised rigouts - and lots of mutton dressed as lamb, roasting in the 45°C heat.

Shortly after 3pm yesterday, an official statement was issued on behalf of Nicky Byrne of Westlife. It read: "Issued on behalf of Nicky Byrne and Georgina Ahern.

"Nicky Byrne and Georgina Ahern were married today in the Church of St Peter and St Paul, in the village of Gallardon, France.

"The couple would like to take this opportunity to thank their family, friends and fans for their support and good wishes on this happy day."

The short notice concluded: "No further statements will be issued."

One model the Irishman kept for himself, the other raised £2,000 for the charity founded in memory of his mother.

The mini-disc sound system is wired up to the trolley handle so Ronan, who has been playing golf for six years, can easily change tracks at the push of a button, enabling him to catch some tunes via a pair head phones during delays on the course.

The Jack Daniels bourbon whisky dispenser on the trolley holds a full bottle, ice flask and two glasses while the famous Harley Davidson emblem is fitted to each wheel trim.

The 26-year-old former lead singer of Boyzone is best known for his No.1 hits ‘When you say nothing at all’ and ‘Life’s a rollercoaster’. He’s now co-manager of the Irish boy band ‘Westlife’ who have inherited his enthusiasm for golf.

"This is the coolest piece of golf equipment I have ever seen! It’s got everything and it’s great not have to pull a trolley anymore," said Ronan, who plays to an 18 handicap and manages to fit in regular rounds at The K Club and Carton House, both near Dublin, where Colin Montogomerie and Mark O’Meara have recently designed new courses.

Added David Wells: "This project has given us all immense satisfaction. Our designers have had great fun overcoming some challenges and we are pleased to be able to help out a great charity in the process."

PowaKaddy International Ltd is owned by European Golf Brands, the world’s largest manufacturer of electronic golf trolleys

Last night's Miss Ireland beauty pageant, which took place at the City West Hotel, was certainly a much better night out than the Miss Ireland I attended in the Burlington some years ago. Former Miss Ireland Andrea Roche, the organiser of this year's pageant, told me this is the new and much-improved search for Ireland's most beautiful woman.

They certainly wheeled out all the Irish pop celebs. Ronan was there with his beautiful wife, Yvonne. Glenda Gilson, who looks super after her few days at the fabulous Nikki Beach Club in Marbella, was there with boyfriend Brian O'Driscoll. Kian Egan from Westlife was in great form. He will be heading off to the Ahern wedding next weekend. Nadine Coyle from Girls Aloud, Coronation Street's Keith Duffy and Louis Walsh, who was one of the judges, were also enjoying themselves.

Chris de Burgh was there to cheer on his beautiful daughter, model Rosanna Davidson, who was Miss Dun Laoghaire. She was being hotly tipped to take the beautiful Newbridge Silverware-designed tiara. Unfortunately, I could only stay for cocktails - my flight to London beckoned. William Doyle from Newbridge told me that the new Miss Ireland becomes the face of Newbridge Silverware for 2003/2004.

It was all write on the night- 02.08.03
A great turn out celebrated the launch of So Long Mr Wrong by Marisa Mackle at a champagne reception in Hughes and Hughes bookshop, Stephen's Green, on Wednesday evening. Fellow author Sarah Webb did the honours.

Among the guests (many of them single girls about town!) included former Miss Ireland Yvonne Ellard, models Ruth Griffin, Roxanne Parker and Kim Murphy, artist Jim Fitzpatrick and authors Marita Conlon-McKenna, Gemma O'Connor, Clare Dowling, Tina Reilly, Martina Devlin, Denise Deegan and Catherine Barry. Several friends from Aer Lingus head office turned up to congratulate Marisa who in a former life was a cabin crew member of the national carrier.

And Marisa's 92-year-old grandmother, Sheila Collins, her parents, Eamonn and Daphne, and her sisters, Tara and Naomi, were all so obviously proud of her literary accomplishments.

SAMANTHA Mumba, Ronan Keating and Simon Casey were just some of the celebrities who were spotted around Killarney over the weekend.

The stars were in town to celebrate the wedding of former Westlife Tour Manager, Anthony Byrne, and his bride, Elizabeth Curley. The couple have no ties with Killarney, but chose the town for their wedding after falling in love with the area when Westlife played at last year’s Summerfest. In fact, they were so taken with the area that they decided to book out the Aghadoe Heights Hotel for a three day celebration. Proceedings kicked off on Friday, with a barbecue and musical entertainment on the lawn for the 187 guests that had travelled to Killarney from all over the world for the event.

The actual wedding took place on Saturday. Following the ceremony in Fossa Church, the party returned to the Aghadoe Heights for the champagne reception and wedding banquet. After the meal, there was a performance by a wedding band called The Heartbeats, before some of the celebrities in attendance got up to entertain the guests.

Ronan Keating was first up on stage, performing his hit single, When You Say Nothing At All, as well as a Van Morrisson number. Samantha Mumba followed with the Roberta Flack classic, Killing Me Softly, while Linda Martin and Simon Casey also leant their talents to the proceedings.

Local DJ, Niall O’Callaghan, kept the party going late into the night. After the entertainment, the guests moved outside to watch a fantastic fireworks display that lit up the skies over Killarney. One of the most spectacular fireworks depicted a love heart surrounding the names of the bride and groom.

The party continued with an extended breakfast on Sunday, before the guests left Killarney for destinations as varied as LA, New York and Australia. Speaking to The Kerryman, Oliver Heffernan, Manager of the Aghadoe Heights, said that the wedding was a great success.“ All the guests enjoyed their stay, and the staff enjoyed the weekend as much as they did,” he said. He said that the guests were all “lovely people,” and added that the Aghadoe Heights would be delighted to have them back in the future.