Children are being asked to organise weddings for their parents as part of a BBC drive to reflect modern Britain.
Traditionally, it was the parents of the bride who worried about planning their daughter’s big day.
Now it is the children who are being asked to organise their parents’ wedding, in a BBC “reality” show.
In Marrying Mum & Dad, children as young as seven will be allowed to spend up to £10,000 on each wedding, picking out bridal gowns and dreaming up surprise themes.
The corporation says that it wants to see parents who are cohabiting, those remarrying after divorce, and even homosexual couples taking part, to “reflect modern Britain”.
But critics claim that it risks trivialising marriage and gives children a huge amount of responsibility which they may not be able to handle.
The series for CBBC, the corporation’s digital channel for primary school age children, will ask children aged between seven and 12 to arrange the character and style of the wedding or civil partnership.
They will be asked to oversee as many aspects of the day as they want, from the transport and entertainment to the dress and cake - though they will not be allowed to arrange hen nights or stag parties.
Parents on the show will have to be prepared to adapt to youthful tastes. Producers said they were anticipating unconventional ideas, which could see parents walking down the aisle dressed as animated characters, such as Shrek and Princess Fiona.
Ninder Billing, the executive producer of Marrying Mum & Dad, said: “Marriages are increasingly taking place where children are already in the picture and this is something we can be celebratory about.
“Long gone are the days where people are ashamed to be having a second marriage or having children out of wedlock.
“We still respect the institution of marriage, but it’s our responsibility to find ways of reflecting modern Britain.”
為了反映現(xiàn)代英國(guó)風(fēng)貌,BBC一檔欄目邀請(qǐng)孩子們?yōu)樽约旱母改附M織婚禮。
傳統(tǒng)上,總是新娘的父母為規(guī)劃女兒的大喜日子而操心。
如今,英國(guó)廣播公司(BBC)的一檔“真人秀”節(jié)目要求孩子們?yōu)楦改附M織婚禮。
在“父母的婚禮”這檔欄目中,組織婚禮的孩子們可以最多每場(chǎng)花費(fèi)1萬(wàn)英鎊,用來(lái)挑選新娘禮服和設(shè)計(jì)令人驚喜的主題,最小的孩子只有7歲。
BBC表示,想讓那些未婚同居、離異后準(zhǔn)備再婚的情侶和同性戀情侶參加節(jié)目,以“反映現(xiàn)代英國(guó)?!?/SPAN>
但是批評(píng)人士稱,這會(huì)讓人覺(jué)得節(jié)目輕視婚禮,并讓孩子們承擔(dān)起過(guò)大的責(zé)任。
英國(guó)廣播公司兒童數(shù)字頻道的這一系列欄目將讓7至12歲的孩子決定婚禮或民事伴侶結(jié)合儀式的特色和風(fēng)格。
婚禮當(dāng)天,孩子們可以看管他們想看管的所有事項(xiàng)——從交通和娛樂(lè),到服裝和蛋糕——但是他們不能組織男子或女子的婚前單身派對(duì)。
參加婚禮的父母要準(zhǔn)備好適應(yīng)孩子的品味。節(jié)目制作人稱,他們期待著不同尋常的創(chuàng)意,比如父母扮成史萊克和菲奧娜公主等動(dòng)畫(huà)角色成婚。
“父母的婚禮”這一欄目的執(zhí)行制片人寧德?tīng)?#8226;比林說(shuō):“帶著孩子結(jié)婚的人已經(jīng)越來(lái)越多,這是值得慶賀的事?!?/SPAN>
“人們?cè)僖膊粸榕e行再婚婚禮或有非婚生子女而感到羞恥了?!?/SPAN>
“我們?nèi)耘f尊重婚姻制度,但我們的責(zé)任是找到反映現(xiàn)代英國(guó)的方式。”