Cost of watching weddings hits £4.4bn

Britons are set to spend £4.4 billion this year, watching their friends and family wed.

That is according to new research from Morgan Stanley, which calculates that a quarter of all UK residents will attend a wedding this year.

And each will pay an average of £292 on gifts, clothes, travel, accommodation, food and drink.

"Weddings have predominately been thought of as a costly business for the bride and groom. However, our research shows that it is not only the happy couple that will be spending on their cards," said Patrick Muir, Morgan Stanley Credit Card marketing director.

But this cost can be considerably reduced by guests in the know.

"With some of us attending five or six weddings this year, it is worth considering how we can spend intelligently on our credit cards. Savings can be made by doubling up on wedding outfits, sharing the cost of the gift with friends or using a card that offers cashback," he added.

However, with the average guest forking out £87 on gifts for the happy couple, the cost of watching friends tie the knot is never cheap.

Travel and accommodation now cost £71 per wedding, with new outfits setting guests back another £61.

And men are set to fork out 75 per cent more than women do.

The men of the nation spend £96 each on presents and an average of £119 on partying at the reception.

Female wedding guests spend less on gifts and food and drink - but splash out an extra £10 per person on their outfits.

But the real big-spenders are those in their 50s. Proud mums and dads, uncles and aunts, and people attending weddings of their friends fork out a massive £558 on each ceremony they attend, 91 per cent above the national average.