The big day has arrived at last. The eyes of the world are on our future king and his bride – and we finally get to see what the wedding dress of the century looks like.

Whatever design Kate Middleton has opted for, it’s safe to say that it won’t have come cheap.

According to St James’s Palace, Prince William and Kate are to have an austere wedding, in keeping with the grim financial climate. But, although the speculated cost of the royal nuptials varies – with some reports suggesting £20 million and others nearer £100 million – you can expect that, as far as most ordinary people are concerned, it will be more ostentatious than austere. When you consider that the relatively quiet wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla, in 2005, cost £5 million, today’s royal wedding is likely to cost several times as much.

Security alone is estimated to cost £20 million, and you can probably throw in another £20 million or so for the reception and other festivities. Thirty years ago, Princess Diana’s wedding dress was worth £9,000, so the cost of Kate’s is expected to hit the £25,000 mark at least.

The extra cost and effect of consecutive bank holidays on businesses, in terms of productivity and overtime, could have a major impact on a recovering economy, although with the wedding generating excitement around the world, particularly in America, the money it costs could be made several times over if tourism in the UK benefits as it did in 1981 following Charles and Diana’s wedding.

In contrast to the pomp and circumstance of William and Kate’s wedding, the austerity wedding appears to be an upcoming trend in Yorkshire, with 66 per cent of respondents to a new survey for investment managers Brewin Dolphin stating that they would spend £10,000 or less on their nuptials if they were getting married today.

With the average spend on a British wedding currently standing at £21,000, the research suggests that couples are ready to start cutting back on wedding costs. The survey also found that 57 per cent of people would forgo a wedding in favour of keeping their savings for a house deposit, if faced with the option of choosing one over the other.

For those already married, Brewin Dolphin’s research shows that 39 per cent of people paid for their weddings from their own savings and 34 per cent of weddings were paid for by parents.

Rupert Fenton, of Brewin Dolphin, Bradford, said: “The weak economy is apparently making people think twice about how much they spend on their weddings, and the evidence is that people will start to take a more frugal approach than in the past.

“The dilemma of either paying for a wedding or saving for a deposit on a house is becoming a very real one for many young couples as they are strapped with debts from university.”

Skipton events organiser Lucy Whiteman said many budget-conscious couples are opting for low-key celebrations, or sacrificing some customs for others.

“Some brides don’t want to spend a fortune on a dress they’re only going to wear once, and choose to put what money they have into the reception or honeymoon instead,” she said. “You don’t have to spend thousands on a wedding dress. Mine cost £500 and I’ve worn it several times since, as a party dress.” Thrifty brides have been snapping up bargains from charity shops. A spokeswoman for the Cancer Research shop on Ivegate said there had been a steady stream of wedding dress sales, and over at Darley Street’s Oxfam shop, which has a bridal department, manager Carl Knott said the royal wedding has had a positive impact on sales.

“Quite a few women have been in to buy a wedding dress for the big day, so they can watch the royal wedding dressed as a bride. We’ve sold several for parties,” says Carl. “We’ve got 130 wedding dresses at the moment, and we also have bridesmaids’ dresses and tiaras.

“Some are brought in by brides who don’t want to keep them after their wedding day, but 70 per cent of the wedding dresses we have are brand new. Many come from fashion shows, donated by designers afterwards, or shops which give us old stock when new ranges come in.”