Jay Chou marries at a fairy-tale wedding in England, complete with a song he wrote for the big day

Hannah Quinlivan dons a frothy gown in this shot where the couple is pictured against a spectacular backdrop of Charles Bridge in Prague. -- PHOTO: FACEBOOK / JAY CHOU
Hannah Quinlivan dons a frothy gown in this shot where the couple is pictured against a spectacular backdrop of Charles Bridge in Prague. -- PHOTO: FACEBOOK / JAY CHOU
A fairy-tale romance is captured in this photo where Jay Chou and Hannah Quinlivan are dressed like a prince and a princess with a white stallion, in front of Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany. -- PHOTO: FACEBOOK / JAY CHOU
Jay Chou kisses Hannah Quinlivan affectionately in a black and white pre-wedding photo in Paris. -- PHOTO: FACEBOOK / JAY CHOU
Hannah Quinlivan in a white Tudor-inspired dress by Canadian designer Mikael Derderian with a heart-shaped cutout on the back. -- PHOTO: FACEBOOK / JAY CHOU
Hannah Quinlivan putting the wedding ring on for Jay Chou in Selby Abbey, Yorkshire. -- PHOTO: FACEBOOK / JAY CHOU
Jay Chou and Hannah Quinlivan walking down the aisle in Selby Abbey, Yorkshire. -- PHOTO: FACEBOOK / JAY CHOU 

In the end, thanks to a dash of time-zone magic, pop king Jay Chou kept both of his promises when he married model Hannah Quinlivan in a fairy-tale wedding in Yorkshire, northern England, on Saturday afternoon, the eve of his 36th birthday.

For years, he said he would be married at age 35. Late last year, after confirming his four-year relationship with Quinlivan, 21, he said his 36th birthday would be his wedding day.

He managed to do both, kind of, at a ceremony that took place in Selby Abbey, a church dating to the 11th century, at about 3.30pm, said Taiwan Apple Daily, around midnight back in his native Taipei.

The bride, in a white Tudor-inspired dress by Canadian designer Mikael Derderian with a heart-shaped cutout on the back, was led down the aisle by her Australian father, who placed her hand in that of the groom, who was in an Alexander McQueen suit. Chou's parents, who are divorced, were among the group of about 50 family members and friends at the church.

Two pastors, one Taiwanese and the other British, performed the ceremony in Mandarin and English and Quinlivan was moved to tears when she exchanged rings and vows with Chou.

The groom composed a song, which was played by a string orchestra at the ceremony, said United Daily News.

Two of Chou's good friends, The Drifters singer Darren and fitness coach Hulk, were the groomsmen. The bridesmaids were actresses Beatrice Fang and Fion Sun.

In interviews before the wedding, Chou said he chose Quinlivan as his partner because "being together for four years isn't an easy thing". He said he was serious about previous girlfriends - who include singer Jolin Tsai - but the relationships would end after two to three years, reported China Times.

Although he is 14 years older than Quinlivan, "my mental age is about the same as hers and we just get along like children". The only thing they disagree on is movies, because they like different genres, but she still asks him first if he wants to watch a certain movie with her, before seeing it with her friends.

The wedding was followed by dinner at a hotel, then a party at Castle Howard, which Chou envisioned as a concert featuring a symphony and a rock band.

Apple Daily estimated the cost of the wedding at NT$23 million (S$1 million), and said it was the most extravagant wedding in Taiwanese entertainment.

Just before the nuptials, Chou's company JVR Music released the couple's wedding photos, which they took in Prague, Paris and Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany in October. Their photographer was Liang Su, brother-in-law of actress Vivian Hsu. JVR also announced that the couple had registered their marriage last month.

Chou had been tight-lipped about the wedding venue, and before they arrived in Yorkshire, guests had just been told to transfer at London for another flight. But hawk-eyed fans recognised Yorkshire when they saw lyricist Vincent Fang's photo of an English town on Weibo. Sun, one of the bridesmaids, also let the cat out of the bag when she posted a photo of the hotel on both Instagram and Weibo, and Weibo identified her location as "Feversham Arms Hotel & Verbena Spa Yorkshire".

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