Avril Lavigne gets hitched this weekend

By M&C News Jul 16, 2006, 15:10 GMT

Canadian rocker Avril Lavigne and singer Deryck Whibley, of the group Sum 41, have tied the knot in an outdoor ceremony in California.

According to People magazine, Lavigne, a daughter of Napanee in Ontario, was walked down the aisle by her father John to the strains of Mendelssohn's "Wedding March."

The couple met while Lavigne was on the last leg of her European tour. Lavigne and the 26-year-old Whibley have been dating since 2004. He proposed to her in June 2005. The two share a home in Los Angeles.

The punk rocker wore a Vera Wang gown and carried a bouquet of white roses. Lavigne's sister and long-time girlfriends were in her bridal party while Sum 41's drummer, Steve Jocz, was Whibley's best man as the 110 guests were gathered.

"I cannot comment on the personal lives of our artists," said Lavigne's publicist, Sean Cordner.

According to People, Lavigne’s family and friends were told several days ago to book their tickets for yesterday's wedding, which was moved up from Aug. 26 because of increasing media interest.

It was a "short, classy ceremony with the sound of helicopters droning overhead carrying photographers trying to get a shot," an unnamed source told the Canadian media.

Paparazzi ringed the estate but the shrubbery kept them at bay.

Lavigne hit the music scene young, with the songs Complicated and Sk8er Boi, and has recently done the voice-over of Heather the possum in the animated movie Over the Hedge. She recently had a part in Richard Linklater's film Fast Food Nation playing an activist.

Whibley's band, formed in 1996 has a new releases, Go Chuck Yourself, was released in March.