From viewing parties to city hall nuptials, here's how thousands marked the royal wedding in Toronto
Thousands of fascinators and royal watchers joined the celebrations in Toronto to mark Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding.
While the royal couple tied the knot at Windsor Castle on Saturday, their big day was broadcast at viewing parties throughout the city.
The Princess of Wales Theatre, named in honour of the groom's late mother, Princess Diana, opened at 5:30 a.m. Hundreds, dressed in formal attire that was topped off with elaborate hats, filled its rows.
Around 1,700 people lined the rows of the theatre.
There wasn't a seat to spare when the crowed cheered as the newlyweds shared their first kiss on the steps of St. George's Chapel.
Meghan, an American actress, has a personal connection to the city. The Los Angeles-native relocated north to Canada for her role as paralegal Rachel Zane in Suits. She lived in Toronto for six years while filming the TV show.
The 36-year-old was in her adopted home when Prince Harry unveiled their romance for the first time in spring 2017. It was also the spot where the couple made their public debut together during the Invictus Games.
The fanfare continued in Toronto's east end as hundreds took in the royal wedding on the big screen at the Fox Theatre.
Viewers sipped on Earl Grey tea and ate biscuits during the ceremony.
Jill Gardner and her daughter, Georgia, braved the early morning rain to attend.
"It was nice to be with everybody else, everybody made an effort, and they all wore their fascinators. It was fabulous to get into the moment," Gardner told CBC News.
The tenderness Meghan and Harry showed during their nuptials, she says, is what stood out to her. "It seems like a big love story for the ages."
Anabel Turner, a self-described royalist, watched beside her husband, Stanley. She said, "I loved the romance, the cultural past that comes through."
For Stanley though, the royal wedding took on deeper meanings. He grew up during the Second World War and explains "if it weren't for Britain, who knows what would have happened."
That is what brought him out this morning. "I love the British and the royal family ... and I have always felt a soft heart for the royal family."
With several expats living in Toronto's Beach area, the theatre's manager David Brown knew he had to open its doors.
"It's nice that people made a day out of it," Brown told CBC Toronto.
At city hall, meanwhile, many couples marked the historic day with a wedding of their own.
Adam Coray Wakelin and Yuko Hase have been together for six years. They wore big smiles on their faces as they left the wedding chamber.
"I'm lost for words," said Wakelin. "I'm really thankful just being with her. I feel a new passion and inspiration to do more."
The couple now shares their wedding date with Harry and Meghan.
"We were just grasped by the idea."
