Las Vegas' celebrity couplings

Celebrity weddings: Noel and Meg did not last

The Las Vegas church where Chris Evans and Billie Piper tied the knot has been the scene of more showbiz marriages than any other chapel in the world.

That is, at least, according to the publicity on the church's website, which lists among its legendary clients:

• Betty Grable & Harry James - the first celebrity wedding in 1943)
• Shirley Bassey
• David Cassidy
• Judy Garland
• Zsa Zsa Gabor & George Sanders
• Mickey Rooney

Elvis Presley and Ann-Margret recited their vows at the chapel in the 1964 movie Viva Las Vegas.

Understandably, the chapel chooses not to mention that some of its celebrity couplings did not last.

Showbiz nuptials: The Little Church of the West

Among the casualties are Oasis star Noel Gallagher, whose three-year marriage to Meg Mathews was dissolved earlier this year.

The couple married in June 1997 to the accompaniment of an Elvis impersonator.

In divorce papers released later, Mathews said she found it "intolerable" to live with Gallagher since he admitted adultery.

However, Gallagher said he had left because he could "no longer tolerate her behaviour".

He said he admitted to cheating only in order to get the divorce over quickly.

Other couples whose Little Church of the West marriages didn't last include

• Richard Gere & Cindy Crawford
• Bob Geldof and Paula Yates
• Dudley Moore and Brogan Lane

Star spangled

When it held its first wedding in 1942, the Little Church of the West was the only chapel on an isolated stretch of highway that would become the Las Vegas Strip.

Bob Geldof and Paula Yates married in 1986

"Originally built as part of the Last Frontier Hotel, the Little Church has played a major role in the evolution of the city's star spangled image," says its publicity page.

The Little Church of the West is a replica of an old west mining town church with an exterior of cedar and an interior of California redwood.

The cheapest wedding package costs $189 (£132) and includes the bride's rose and carnation bouquet, the groom's boutonniere and seven photographs.