Getty ImagesA barrage of celebrities – including mother of the supposed groom Donna Kelce -have been spotted in New York ahead of pop star Taylor Swift’s expected wedding to NFL player Travis Kelce.
Among the stars in the Big Apple are TV presenter Graham Norton, who Swift invited to the ceremony on his BBC chat show last year.
Fleabag actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge and singer Sabrina Carpenter were also seen in NYC ahead of the big day, which is thought to be taking place on Friday at Madison Square Garden. A rehearsal dinner is rumoured to be happening on Thursday.
While the guest list is unknown, seeing celebrities from all over the globe huddled in New York could help piece together who might be there.
Norton was photographed with his husband Jono McLeod at JFK Airport. Swift previously noted while appearing on his show that she planned to invite him to the big day. Asked by the host when the wedding would be, she said: “Oh, you’ll know. I was going to invite you to it.”
Waller-Bridge was also spotted in the city. She and Swift have been known to socialise together. Waller-Bridge was among the attendees at Swift’s Eras Tour in London in 2024, and hosted US sketch show Saturday Night Live in 2019 when Swift was the musical guest.
Donna Kelce was also spotted disembarking a flight into JFK airport by tabloid reporters but didn’t answer questions about the rumoured wedding festivities or how her son is feeling.
Jack Antonoff, a close friend and frequent creative collaborator of Taylor’s, was also seen out Thursday evening, donning a suit. As was her close friend singer Selena Gomez, who posted to social media a video of herself in a black gown and diamond earrings in the back of a vehicle.
Singers Dua Lipa, Camila Cabello and close pal Sabrina Carpenter were also spotted recently, along with actress Anya Taylor-Joy.
Longtime friend Ed Sheeran and Swift collaborator Aaron Dessner were spotted together in upstate New York sharing a meal at a restaurant.
NFL San Francisco 49ers player George Kittle, singer Benson Boone and English actress Suki Waterhouse are among other celebrities reportedly attending the wedding.
Swift’s childhood friend Abigail Anderson Berard, who has been in multiple Swift music videos, is also expected to be there. It is unknown if actress Blake Lively, who drew Swift into a bitter legal battle with Lively’s It Ends With Us co-star Justin Baldoni, will be invited. The case was settled in May.
Props including a grand piano, carpets and a box of mirror balls have been seen being taken into the arena, while “no parking” signs have been placed around the vicinity.
A forklift truck operator has also been spotted wearing a Swift t-shirt while working at the venue.
Neither Swift nor Kelce has confirmed details of the wedding. The BBC has contacted their representatives.
However, the couple announced on Thursday that they had donated $26 million (£19.5 million) to charities in the US, including food banks, children’s hospitals and Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
Getty ImagesAs speculation mounted, New York City officials confirmed to the BBC that someone had applied for a street closure permit near Madison Square Garden over the 4 July Independence Day weekend.
Dora Pekec, a spokesperson for the New York City mayor’s office, told the BBC a permit was filed in early June to close roads around the area from 2 to 4 July.
The New York Times (NYT) first reported that the concert had been booked for a private event last week. It added that several players on Kelce’s Kansas City Chiefs American football team had booked hotel rooms nearby.
Before the NYT‘s report, TMZ and other outlets speculated that Madison Square Garden, a 22,000-seat arena that is used mainly for large concerts and is also home to the New York Knicks basketball team, would host the wedding celebrations.
The NYT has not explicitly said the arena event is a wedding, describing it as a celebration that could be related to the nuptials.
An unnamed law enforcement official, briefed on the security plans, also confirmed the wedding plans to the Associated Press (AP), saying they had been warned about an influx of Swifties (Swift’s fans).
Darts competition clear-up
Mickey Blank, a celebrity photographer who has been working in New York for over 10 years, told BBC Newsbeat that Madison Square Garden is currently surrounded by members of the press but there’s not actually much to see.
Despite rumours of a red-carpet reception for the expected A-list guests, Blank said she’s not expecting a parade of big-name arrivals.
“It’s like Pentagon-level secrecy,” she said.
“You cannot go in, you cannot see anything.”
The arena boasts underground parking that allows people to arrive in almost secrecy, but the BBC spotted a large white canopy tent being set up in front of the arena where many guests are expected to arrive.
Many VIPs though, including Swift and Kelce, are expected to enter through the underground entrance for privacy.
“Your chances of seeing Taylor Swift are, like, lower than zero,” she said.
She added that one of the biggest challenges facing those preparing the venue will be all the recent events that just were hosted there. event that was just staged there.
Blank attended a darts championships at the arena earlier this week, filled with beer-drinking fans, many dressed in costume.
“The floor was so sticky, I could barely move,” she said.
Days before that, the arena hosted a concert for the rock band the Bleachers. Earlier last month, the arena also hosted parties and basketball games when the New York Knicks won the NBA Championship.
Transforming the arena into a wedding venue will be a feat.
“I cannot imagine the preparation that goes into that,” Blank said.
Getty ImagesAt a press conference on Wednesday, New York’s mayor Zohran Mamdani said in response to a question about the wedding: “We are fully prepared, there isn’t anything to share beyond that.”
In a post on social media giving advice about dealing with the heatwave in the city, Mamdani told them to stay cool, “especially if you’re (hypothetically) having your wedding at MSG this weekend”.
The date 4 July is apparently a favourite national holiday of Swift’s, which she has previously celebrated by throwing big parties.
Swift announced her engagement to the Kansas City Chiefs player in a joint Instagram post in August last year.
