Google Doodles William-Kate’s Royal Wedding London Scene

Global search engine giant Google, in an unprecedented move, has made changes to its logo to celebrate the royal wedding of Prince William with Kate Middleton. Better known as Google doodles, these are decorative changes made to the Google logo to celebrate holidays, anniversaries, and the lives of famous artists and scientists.

This Friday morning Google’s Doodle is a cartoon image of Westminster Abbey, rendered in the happily-ever-after style and the royal carriage carrying the newlyweds in a shower of confetti. There’s also a link to let you watch the royal wedding on YouTube. Interestingly, this is Google’s first doodle honoring a wedding.

Though this doodle is not animated, clicking on the image takes you to the 196 million search results for “royal wedding” with the top entry leading in to a live streaming (screening) of the ceremony. In addition, if you use Google Maps and type an address in central London and then drag the “orange man” icon to get the Google Street View pictures, on landing it turns into a bride and groom.

A third of the planet was forecast to be watching Friday as the future king and queen of England start their lives as husband and wife with the two simple words “I will,” ending months of buildup with the most public of spectacles.

The first Google doodle appeared in 1998, in the shape of a stick figure drawing to illustrate the Burning Man festival in Nevada. Doodles have celebrated the Fourth of July, the Olympics, and John Lennon’s 70th birthday.

Google estimates it has created more than 900 doodles since 1998, with 270 of them running in 2010. Some appear globally, and others are tailored for local markets outside the US, such as Kenya Independence Day.