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Here's How You Can Live Stream the Royal Wedding for Free

Don't miss out on the global TV event of the spring.

The wedding of the year is almost here. In less than three weeks, on May 19, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will become man and wife at St. George's Chapel on the grounds of Windsor Castle. Afterwards, they'll take a horse-drawn carriage through the High Street to greet their adoring public, before returning to the castle for an epic reception that's rumored to include a special reunion performance by the Spice Girls.

If you aren't one of the 2,640 members of the public invited to the wedding, you must be thinking to yourself: How do I watch this thing?

Luckily, you've got a few options on that front. If you're got a cable subscription, you can tune in to NBC, since Today show hosts Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb will be reporting live from "an exclusive vantage point overlooking Windsor Castle" as early as 4 am EST.

CBS will also be starting coverage in the early hours of 4 am. Tina Brown, a talk-show host and author of The Diana Chronicles, will be joining CBS This Morning host Gayle King and Entertainment Tonight host Kevin Frazier for the broadcast.

ABC anchors Robin Roberts and David Muir will be doing special coverage on the ground of Windsor Castle from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. EST.

PBS will be airing a five-part series on the wedding starting on May 14th, ending with live coverage of the big day starting at 4:30 am. And if you want coverage that's complete with the full British accent, you can watch the livestream on BBC America by putting your cable subscription details into their account.

If you don't have a television or a cable subscription, however, don't despair. The five hours of special coverage will be available to stream on ABC News' digital platforms including, ABCNews.com and GoodMorningAmerica.com. The ABC News iOS app will even include an augmented reality (AR) feature that will enable you to take photos with a 3D royal carriage or pose next to a 3D version of the Queen's Guard.

Last week, BritBox, the subscription streaming video service from BBC Studios and ITV, announced they would be doing a live stream as early as 2:30 am EST. British TV presenters Phillip Schofield and Julie Etchingham will be talking to royal experts and friends/family members of the bride and groom, so this promises to potentially be the most comprehensive coverage of the highly-anticipated event. The service costs $6.99 per month but it's got a 7-day free trial that'll do just fine for the big day. The subscription streaming video service told The Hollywood Reporter that it would even be bringing Harry & Meghan – The Royal Wedding: The Big Day on the Big Screen to movie theaters on May 19.

So whether you want to pop on the telly and have it play in the background, invite some girls over to pour over every detail on a streaming service, or head to the movie theater, your viewing options are endless. And if getting up at 4:30 am on a Saturday seems a little too intense, just know that the actual ceremony won't be taking place until around noon GMT, which is 7 am EST, and a much more reasonable point at which to wake up, have a cup of coffee and a piece of cake, and see it all happen.

For more on the royal wedding for our expert, read 20 Things We Know About Harry and Meghan's Wedding.

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Diana Bruk
Diana is a senior editor who writes about sex and relationships, modern dating trends, and health and wellness. Read more
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