Mystery surrounds Madonna wedding

DORNOCH, Scotland -- Pop icon Madonna is keeping the world guessing about her marriage to film director Guy Ritchie, with no formal announcement hours after the wedding was scheduled.

The ceremony is thought to have taken place in a Scottish castle at 1800 GMT on Friday but the nature of the proceedings has remained a well-kept secret.

Celebrities in formal dress -- including actress Gwyneth Paltrow, designer Donatella Versace, and musician Sting and his wife -- were earlier chauffeured through the castle gates on Friday evening.

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But at 2200 GMT hundreds of journalists were still waiting for word in the freezing cold at the gates of Skibo Castle, backed by an array of lights and satellite dishes.

The couple's entourage has kept a tight lid on the wedding plans, keeping secret everything from the time of the ceremony to the guest list, to details of the Material Girl's dress.

Earlier, two mystery men were arrested by police -- and later released -- after what appeared to be an attempt to pull off the showbusiness scoop of the year by recording the baptism of the couple's four-month-old son Rocco.

The plot involved one of them hiding for more than 24 hours in the organ loft of the 13th century Dornoch cathedral.

Police sources said a tape recorder with the baptism ceremony on it was confiscated from the first man and two black plastic bags used as make-shift toilets were seized as evidence.

Madonna's big day was strictly off limits for the press who have turned the U.S. pop icon into one of the world's most photographed woman after the death of Princess Diana.

VIDEO CNN's Nic Robertson finds the normally sleepy town of Dornoch buzzing with celebrities Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) CNN's Roger Evans reports on the secret ceremony and the media that hope to catch a glimpse Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)

Three security teams, equipped with thermal heat-seeking equipment, are prowling the pine forests around the Gothic-turreted Skibo Castle in search of intruders. Three paparazzi have already been ejected from the grounds.

Up to 1,000 reporters from around the world have invaded the sleepy little Highland town of Dornoch for Britain's wedding of the year. The rumour mill is working overtime, the tabloids are competing fiercely for every snippet of showbusiness gossip.

But for Madonna, 42, and Ritchie, 32, the British director of the 1999 crime comedy Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, it is the perfect Highland hideaway from the paparazzi.

Madonna, nee Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone of Detroit, whose fortune is estimated at $200 million, has spurned the celebrity magazines who were seeking exclusive photos of of her second wedding. She was previously married to actor Sean Penn.

The wedding ceremony was to be performed by Church of Scotland minister Susan Brown who also officiated at the baptism.

The diminutive coalminer's daughter, known as "Holy Spice," has shared star billing with the glamorous couple as the world's media descended on her Highland parish.

Reverend Brown said the wedding would be a "special and meaningful" occasion for Madonna and Ritchie.

"I hope the service is one we can enjoy above else. It's good a couple want to commit themselves to each other for life. It is a big day for them and their friends and family," she said.

Asked if the couple had pre-wedding nerves, she replied, "It would be an unusual couple if either party didn't have a turn of nerves before the event. I get nervous before every service."

The Associated Press & Reuters contributed to this report.

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