With an expected audience of 2 billion globally, apparently people care about the fairytale romance of William and Kate. While excitement over the nuptials is limited to royalists and journos sent to the UK to report from the event, there is certainly a sense of enthusiasm for the spectacle.

With the wedding broadcast across almost every free-to-air TV channel on Friday, escaping the event will not be easy. Which channel deserves your attention? Would you be better served getting The Kings Speech on DVD, released on the same day? Here’s a rundown of what is going to air…

Channel 7

  • Start time: 4pm (Sydney/Brisbane/Melbourne), 3.30pm (Adelaide), 2pm (Perth).
  • Hosts: Chris Bath and Matt White
  • Details: Supported by ITN coverage, one would expect Seven to provide a traditional broadcast of the event. Cameras will follow the nuptials at Westminster Abbey and follow the couple back to Buckingham Palace. Reporters Chris Reason, Angela Cox, and Adrian Brown will be at Westminster Abbey, at street parties and at Kate Middleton’s hometown of Bucklebury.
  • State alterations: In Melbourne and Adelaide coverage will move to 7Two while the main channel deals with the Sydney v Carlton AFL game (delayed by 30 mins in Adelaide), but will resume coverage at 10.45pm on Seven. In Perth coverage shifts to 7Two at 7.30pm while Seven screens its news bulletin followed by the delayed AFL coverage.

Channel 9

  • Start time: 4pm (Sydney/Brisbane/Melbourne), 3.30pm (Adelaide), 2pm (Perth).
  • Hosts: Karl Stefanovic, Lisa Wilkinson and Dame Edna Everage.
  • Details: Karl and Lisa will provide commentary, accompanied by royal experts and other related talking heads. At 6.30pm the coverage will break away to a live edition of A Current Affair with Tracey Grimshaw and Ita Buttrose providing commentary from the royal route. From 7pm, Karl and Lisa return to provide commentary, joined by the Dame. While Edna may provide some welcome relief from the tedium of the coverage, there is always the risk this make take too much away from the traditional coverage one would want from Nine. Coverage will also be simulcast in high definition on GEM.
  • State alterations: NSW and Queensland will break from coverage on Nine for Friday Night Football. Wedding coverage continues in these states on GEM.

Channel 10

  • Start time: 7pm (Sydney/Brisbane/Melbourne), 6.30pm (Adelaide), 5.30pm (Perth).
  • Hosts: Charlie Pickering, Dave Hughes, Carrie Bickmore, Hamish MacDonald, Lucy McDonald, Fitzy, Wippa, Colin Lane, and the “Circle girls”.
  • Details: Providing an alternative from the traditional coverage offered across Seven, Nine, and the ABC, Ten is utilising its chat show talent with three shows across the evening. A 7PM Project special will have Charlie and Dave in the Melbourne studio crossing to Carrie, Hamish and Lucy in the UK. The ceremony will be broadcast with Nova FM talent Fitzy and Wippa providing commentary. And finally the evening concludes with a 90-minute debrief with the panel from The Circle on the couch recapping the wedding.

ABC1

  • Start time: 6pm (Sydney/Brisbane/Melbourne), 5.30pm (Adelaide), 4pm (Perth).
  • Hosts: Huw WIlliams
  • Details: As one would expect, the ABC will provide the most traditional wedding coverage on the night. Delivering a feed from the BBC, Williams and various BBC reporters will be stationed at Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace and at various points along the route of the procession. Expect expert guests, royal historians and fashion experts to break down the event with excruciating detail. ABC1 will break away to their 7pm news (8.40pm in WA), resuming straight after.

Other

Coverage of the wedding can also be found on:

  • Sky News Australia (6pm — 5.30am)
  • APAC — rebroadcasting London Sunrise (3pm-6pm)
  • E! Entertainment (6pm)
  • YouTube — the official channel of the British monarchy will broadcast the event in full online.