Dua Lipa wedding celebrations spark protests and reignite debate in Italy about celebrity weddings.
Palermo residents have taken to the streets in protest over the celebrity wedding celebrations of singer Dua Lipa and British actor Callum Turner, taking place in the Sicilian capital this weekend.
Lipa, 30, and Fantastic Beasts star Turner, 36, married in a registry office in London earlier in the week and chose Palermo for their wedding reception.
Winner of multiple Grammy Awards, Dua Lipa rose to global superstardom with a string of chart-topping pop hits including Don’t Start Now, Levitating and New Rules.
The wedding celebrations in Palermo, estimated to cost around €1.5 million and being attended by hundreds of guests from around the world, run from Friday through to Sunday.
Protesters have plastered the city’s historic centre with posters and placed signs on barricades blocking public access to the area where the event is taking place.
Protests
Many local residents have rejected mayor Roberto Lagalla’s contention that the event will bring “great advertising returns” to Palermo.
The protests have been organised by young members of the permanent assembly ‘Apro Palermo’, a group that campaigns against overtourism.
Posters appeared early on Friday morning on the walls and shutters of Piazza Croce dei Vespri, close to the area where the celebrations were held between Palazzo Gangi and the city’s modern art gallery.
‘Palermo is not for the rich’
The signs placed on the barricades sealing off the street to the modern art gallery read “Palermo is not for rent, our piazza is not your living room.”
Other leaflets carried the slogans “Palermo non è per i ricchi” – Palermo is not for the rich.
On social media, Apro Palermo invited residents to report any problems connected with the festivities.
Dua Lipa and Palermo
Dua Lipa’s link to Palermo is well documented. In the summer of 2025, she spent several days in the city with Turner, visiting the Palatine Chapel, the Cathedral and the church of Santa Caterina, as well as wandering Via Maqueda.
She posted photographs on Instagram captioned “Palermo in my heart.”
Speculation about the wedding had been building since earlier this year, when Italian media reported that Villa Igiea – Palermo’s Art Nouveau palazzo overlooking the Gulf, part of the Rocco Forte group – had been booked for the occasion.
Wider debate
The protests in Palermo reflect broader tensions around high-profile VIP celebrations in Italian cities – such as the Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez wedding in Venice – where local residents increasingly push back against the disruption and commercialisation that accompanies the exclusive events.
Photo credit: MLM IMAGES Los Angeles / Shutterstock.com
