It's less than two months before the royal wedding of Prince William of Wales and fiancée Catherine "Kate" Middleton— time to check what we know and, even more important, what we don't know. Which is quite a lot, including details about her dress.  Pool photo by Niall Carson  No sign of wedding jitters: Kate Middleton and Prince William during a visit last week to Belfast, Northern Ireland. They will tie the knot April 29.  Pool photo by Niall Carson  No sign of wedding jitters: Kate Middleton and Prince William during a visit last week to Belfast, Northern Ireland. They will tie the knot April 29.  Celebrity media have been on a tear since the engagement was announced in November. Example: Entertainment Weekly's cover two weeks ago screamed: "You Are Invited to a MEDIA FRENZY!"  A poll last month by 60 Minutes and Vanity Fair shows that most Americans are somewhat less frenzied, but their interest probably will spike as the wedding gets closer. Even in usually reserved Britain, the excitement and anticipation is at an all-time high, says Emily Brand, a British historian and author of a new book, Royal Weddings, out March 22. "Interest seems to be stronger, partly because this is the marriage of the future king and partly because it is (seen as) a genuine and remarkably 'ordinary' romance," she says.  So far, people are not yet camped outside the palace gates — but give it time, jokes Sophie Kinsella, the London-based author of the Shopaholic novels, including the latest, Mini Shopaholic. She says people on her street are already talking about mounting a neighborhood street party to celebrate, a tradition all over the country.  "I think everyone will get suckered into it, but quite last-minute," Kinsella says. "Everyone is quite calm now, but my prediction is that suddenly we'll all go berserk and think, 'Omigod, I need to buy six sets of bunting! And flags!' It will snowball."  The all-around warm feelings for the couple continue, and their unprecedented hands-on organization of their wedding, mindful of both economic austerity and the need for the country to celebrate, has been praised. "It's been an incredibly well-handled and successful project — there's optimism and hope the day will go really well, and hopefully it won't rain," says Katie Nicholl, a veteran royals correspondent and author of The Making of a Royal Romance, an updated edition of her biography of William, Harry and Middleton.  But many details of the nuptials are still to come. We know when and where — 11 a.m. at Westminster Abbey in London on April 29. We know the route to the wedding and the mode of transport — car to the abbey, antique coach back to Buckingham Palace. We know how many people are invited — 1,900 invitations went out — but mostly not who is attending. Nicholl says a list of the guests — such as for a White House state dinner — will not be disclosed by the palace because it's not a state event. Likewise, the list of about 800 guests for the wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles in 2005 was not disclosed.  But so far we know the Beckhams are in, the Obamas are not. Elton John is in, William's former aunt Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, is not, although her daughters, William's cousins Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, are. Also invited are 50 members of the royal family and a few dozen other royals from around the world, plus the shopkeeper, postman and proprietor of the pub near Middleton's millionaire parents' home in the village of Bucklebury.  We know that around 600 people are invited to the luncheon reception at Buckingham Palace hosted by William's grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, and we know that about 300 people are invited to the dinner-and-dancing gala at the palace that night, hosted by Prince Charles. About 80 invitees are people connected to William's various charities.  The palace has announced who is in the wedding party: Younger brother Prince Harry is the best man, or supporter, as the British say; younger sister Philippa (Pippa) Middleton is the maid of honor; and a clutch of friends' and relatives' youngsters will be bridesmaids and page boys. There's been no official confirmation of details about the bachelor party.  We don't know what the couple will be called — Prince and Princess William of Wales? — or whether the queen will grant them new titles on the day of the wedding, such as Duke and Duchess of Whatever. We don't know where they're going on their honeymoon, but Nicholl reports that the leading contender is remote-yet-close-by Scilly Islands off the Cornwall coast in far southwest Britain.  "Austerity is the order of the day, so they're very mindful of where they're seen to go, such as anywhere exotic and far away," Nicholl says. "They're under some pressure to choose a holiday in the British Isles, and the Scilly Isles are both incredibly hard to get to and beautiful." We know they'll live for at least the next few years in their rented farmhouse in Anglesey, the Welsh island where William is stationed for the Royal Air Force. But we don't know where they'll live when they're in London. Nicholl says the leading contender for London is an apartment in Kensington Palace, where his mother, Princess Diana, resided at the time of her death in 1997.  We know that Irish milliner Philip Treacy is doing the wedding party hats (men and women traditionally wear some kind of chapeau at British weddings), but we don't know which tiara from the queen's collection Middleton will wear, or if she'll wear a veil. Will her long hair be pulled back or left loose? Stilettos or sensible heels?  We won't know any of those things until the day — just as we most likely won't see a sketch of her wedding gown until she arrives at the church. "She wants to keep the reveal under wraps, like every bride across America," says Millie Martini Bratten, editor of Brides magazine.  Is it possible in the modern media era to keep something so widely anticipated a secret? "She's adamant, and it's plausible because the only people who need to know the details are her and the designer," Nicholl says.  Just last week, the British press reported on fashion-world chatter that the designer will be Sarah Burton, who took over for designer Alexander McQueen after his death and most recently was applauded for a striking crimson gown that first lady Michelle Obama wore at a White House state dinner. Burton denies she's the one.  "Kate has gotten some criticism for not having her finger on the fashion pulse — she doesn't have a stylist, for instance — but if she's choosing one of our most important designers, a cutting-edge designer (such as McQueen's Burton), that would put her on the fashion edge like she's never been before," Nicholl says.  In any case, the media aren't going to give up. "There will be speculation and guessing and attempts to find out what it looks like, and in the era of WikiLeaks, we might find out something," Martini Bratten says.  Bridget Foley, executive editor of Women's Wear Daily, is pursuing the prize eagerly. "We would love to have the scoop, but it's going to be difficult," Foley says. "Control of information is so difficult today. Suppose the girl handling the fabric swatches tells a friend, who then tweets about it?"  But secrecy, after all, is traditional at weddings. And there's royal precedent: The massive fairy-princess dress worn by then-Lady Diana Spencer when she married Prince Charles in 1981 was unseen by the public until she climbed out of the coach at the door to St. Paul's Cathedral.  But that was back in the media Dark Ages. Nowadays, says Martini Bratten, the media chase every scrap of news because what happens at a royal wedding can change the culture and the economy. "It's about the impact — the dress will have a huge influence, just as Diana changed the way brides dressed," she says. "Americans are going to replay this in some version for years."  On the other hand, the frenzy is nothing new, not even compared with the 19th century. "In the Victorian era, the papers might be almost entirely devoted to exploring every minute detail," including the service, the fashions and the music, while reporters mingled with "crowds drinking beer, singing songs and cheering wildly every time anyone even remotely connected with the royal procession appeared," Brand says.  William may wear something new, too: He has just been made an honorary colonel of the British Army's Irish Guards, which means he's entitled to wear their ceremonial uniform of scarlet jacket and black pants with red piping. Royal grooms typically wear uniforms to their weddings; William's father, grandfather and uncle did.  Given what is known about Middleton's style so far, it's probable her dress won't look like Diana's frothy, flouncy concoction of silk taffeta, with huge puffy sleeves, a ruffled neckline and 25-foot train. Middleton's dress will likely be by a British or Britain-based designer. "She will wear a statement dress, and it will be copied," Martini Bratten says. She predicts something "long, fluid, floaty and simple, modern and clean, maybe some lace, maybe a long narrow train or a long lace veil, but with enough volume to fill the space" in the church.  Foley, who says Middleton could look good in anything, predicts: "She will wear something elegant that has some character to it and design bravado, simple and sophisticated — chic simplicity."  , visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor  . For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to  . Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to  We've updated the Conversation Guidelines. Changes include a brief review of the moderation process and an explanation on how to use the "Report Abuse" button.
The wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton is April 29, and most of the details are still closely guarded, including what her dress will look like.