There are plenty of shows about weddings at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Linus Karp and Joseph Martin star in one, the inordinately long-titled The Fit Prince (who gets switched on the square in the frosty castle the night before (insert public holiday here)).
But on Saturday, they became the first couple to marry onstage as part of the official Fringe programme.
Their wedding in the 750-seat Pleasance Grand was ticketed with friends and family seated alongside other performers and fringe goers.
“We’ve been a real life couple for 11 years and we’re having a sort of a small ceremony in September but we wanted to do the legal bit first and we thought Edinburgh’s a very special place for us so why not do it there?” says Joseph.
Both grooms were in outfits designed by Edinburgh based Cosimo Damiano Angiulli (Simo the label) and came down the aisles to their own distinctive theme tunes.
“There was a moment where we left the stage just before the audience were led in and I felt the nerves kick in a little bit,” says Joseph.
“But then show mode kicked in and bizarrely, it felt like the natural place for us to be at that point. We’re at home. “
The ceremony was conducted by Jackie Blackburn from Edinburgh City Council.
“I have been involved in many unique ceremonies but none quite on the scale of this,” she says.
“It was by far the largest venue and greatest number of guests I’ve officiated in front of.
“My favourite part of their ceremony was when the grooms made their vows and declarations to each other – they were so sincere as in addition to the required legalities they had written their own personal vows, it was like a period of calm in the midst of magical romantic mayhem.”
Joseph, who is from Northamptonshire, vowed to continue to enable Linus’s “insane ideas” – as he dressed as Princes Diana and Gwyneth Paltrow for their other shows Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story, and Gwyneth Goes Skiing.
Linus, who’s from Sweden, described Joseph as the “sweetest most ridiculous person” and said he couldn’t wait to create “more stupid fringe shows” together.
Both sets of parents joined their sons on stage where Linus’s mother Elisabeth Ljunggren said they were happy to share their day.
“Love is a gift to cherish and care for, every day in good times and bad, in sickness and health,” she said.
“We love you both to the moon and back.”
Fellow performers including Sooz Kemper, Emily Lamey and theatre company Recent Cutbacks provided the entertainment, and guests were invited to donate to charity or buy tickets to their shows in lieu of gifts.
The happy couple had just over an hour with their guests in the outdoor bar before they had to leave for that day’s performance.
Meanwhile with US and UK dates in September and December, there’s little time for a honeymoon either.
“I’m not sure there’ll be time for a real honeymoon for a little while at least but performing at the fringe is very much a honeymoon in itself, very relaxing,” says Linus.
“Maybe we’ll climb Arthur’s seat. That seems like a good way to celebrate our Scottish wedding.”