It's a marriage not just a carnival

At times, the coverage morphed into a kind of scripting treatment for a soap opera, particularly as the bride's family issues came to the fore.

It was surely unfair to expect that Ms Markle's father or siblings should have been properly prepared for the sudden glare of fame. If talent-show winners often struggle to come to grips with sudden notoriety, how can we expect people to cope who've never even sought it? And on a such truly global level?

As you might expect, some news outlets concentrate less on the glitz of the occasion and more on a discussion about the present and likely future state of the monarchy itself. This can be helpful.

On the morning of the wedding, the respected news agency Reuters took that perhaps a little too far.

A survey by Reuters found that two thirds of Brits were not interested in watching the royal wedding. This may be interesting, but it is a stretch to say that this reflects on the monarchy as an institution.

Reuters claimed that the occasion was all about "injecting new life into a monarchy striving to stay relevant in the modern age". Really? In a 2015 YouGov poll, 68 percent of Brits said they felt the monarchy is "good for the country". Only nine percent felt the opposite, while 17 percent had no opinion.

There is some debate about the future role of a number of senior British institutions - the House of Lords, for example - but to claim that the monarchy is becoming redundant is looking for a story where there is none.

In the post-Brexit age, this nation will rely on finding and building new global trade arrangements. The country will look to traditions such as the monarchy to provide a unifying effect and to reflect Britain's values to the world.

Institutions and national interests aside, however, we must not lose sight of the fact that a royal wedding is still just that: it is more than a one-day spectacle, it is the beginning of life-long journey.

If weddings were merely about signing a legal contract, or a romantic day out, even royal weddings would hold less attraction for us. Even in these often cynical times, marriage is still seen as a covenant and a wedding involves the exchanging of vows and the intertwining of two lives into a common cause.

It follows then that while we may all share in the joy of a royal wedding, we shouldn't expect a share in the ups and downs of the marriage itself.

For weeks if not months to come, the rolling news media industry and social media chatter will bombard us with information about the young couple.