Floyd Cush
Reporting from Madison Square Garden

There's excitement in the air here at Madison Square Garden.

The perimeter has largely been fenced off with barricades and there is already a heavy police presence looking uncomfortable in the stifling heat.

Media from around the world are massing and curious onlookers are stopping to take pictures of the spectacle.

Not everyone's excited though - as I was interviewing tourists, a local loudly expressed his anger at Taylor Swift for causing so much disruption on an already busy weekend.

Welcome to New York!

Mark Savage
Music correspondent - favourite song: Seven

Last August, Travis and Taylor were about to go for dinner, when the sportsman suggested having a glass of wine in the garden.

Once they got outside, he dropped to one knee and popped the question. “He really crushed it in surprising me,” she later revealed.

Speaking on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, she added that Kelce had “custom-designed” the ring, which features a mine-cut diamond bezel-set in a yellow gold band.

Jewellery experts have estimated the ring is worth as much as $1m (£750,000) if it features a natural diamond of 10 to 12 carats. More conservative estimates put the cost at $750,000 (£561,000).

But the price isn’t as important as what it represents.

“I look at it constantly,” said Taylor. “It doesn't feel in any way normal for me, I'm still like, 'Oh man, wow!'”

Image source, Getty Images

Helen Willetts
Lead weather presenter

New York, along with much of the eastern half of the USA and Canada, is in the middle of a prolonged and dangerous heatwave, one which is expected to last into the weekend. This level and duration of heat is rare.

New York's Central Park saw 100F (37.7C) for the first time in 14 years on Thursday. This is not a monthly record, but certainly notably hot. With the added humidity it felt more like 106F (41.1C) and similar dangerous heat continues today.

Friday could see temperatures climbing to 100.4F (38C) again, dangerously high with the high humidity - and later in the day, this may lead to severe thunderstorms developing.

There is an extreme heat warning out until 21:00 ET (02:00 BST) on Friday and after that an extreme heat watch continues into Saturday.

The heat will then shift eastwards and southwards over the weekend.

This will end in a round of severe thunderstorms, bringing other issues like flash flooding, large hail and damaging winds, even the odd tornado.

As for next week, it looks like the heatwave conditions will build in the west

Image source, Reuters

In a joint post on Instagram, shared on August 26, 2025, Taylor and Travis announced their engagement to the world.

The five photos show the couple in what appeared to be a lush garden, surrounded by roses and hydrangeas. In one shot, Kelce is down on one knee in front of Swift, the two in an embrace. In another, the singer flashes the ring, which boasts a massive rectangle cut diamond.

“Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married,” they captioned the post.

They included a firecracker emoji which was perhaps a reference to TNT, or T and T - Taylor and Travis’s initials when abbreviated. (Travis had previously given Taylor a TNT bracelet as a Christmas present.)

The post was accompanied by the ballad So High School from the Tortured Poets Department album - rumoured to have been written about Kelce.

Travis's father Ed Kelce later told ABC News that the proposal took place about two weeks before the couple shared their photos.

"He got her out there, they were about to go out to dinner, and he said, 'Let's go out and have a glass of wine'... they got out there, and that's when he asked her, and it was beautiful," he said.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's wedding celebrations are rumoured to be happening in New York City later this evening.

Is it gonna last forever, or is it gonna go down in flames? Will it be a nightmare dressed like a daydream? Or is this a real life Romeo and Juliet love story?

We want to know how you are marking the couple's much-anticipated big day.

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We've still had no word from the rumoured bride or groom, but there are signs of life inside Madison Square Garden.

Teams are busily setting up curtains and gazebos, while rows of lorries were ready and waiting outside the venue earlier. The 20,000 capacity arena is certainly gearing up for something.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Getty Images

July 2023: A bumpy start

Travis Kelce tries to shoot his shot with the famous pop star at a concert. On his podcast, he told his brother Jason that he'd made her a friendship bracelet with his number and attempted to present it to her, but failed. In an interview, months later, Swift said: "This all started when Travis very adorably put me on blast on his podcast..."

September-November 2023: Going public

Swift is spotted attending a Kansas City Chiefs NFL game in September 2023, where Kelce plays as a tight-end. She watched alongside Kelce's mother, Donna. At an Eras Tour concert two months later, she swapped lyrics to one of her songs, giving Travis a shout-out. When the concert wrapped, she ran into his arms for a kiss.

Early 2024: Temperature rising

The pair is seen supporting each other at multiple major events. Swift attended the Super Bowl, and celebrated the Chiefs' win with Travis and his family. Soon after, the football player attended the singer's Eras Tour concert in Sydney. He wore multiple friendship bracelets on both arms.

June 2024: 'Tayvis' hits London

Travis join Taylor on stage for one of her concerts. After the show, Swift and Kelce pose with Prince William, Prince George and Princess Charlotte in a behind-the-scenes selfie from the singer's London concert. It's their first social media post together as a couple.

August 2025: Engagement announced

The pair officially announce their engagement in a joint Instagram post. Kelce got down on one knee in a lush garden surrounded by flowers. "Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married," they captioned the post.

Read more about the famous couple's years together here: From friendship bracelets to wedding rings: A Taylor and Travis timeline

Sean Coughlan
Royal correspondent

Prince William and Catherine won't be there in the US for the wedding of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce.

So royalty won't be joining pop royalty for their big day.

But even if not a guest at the wedding, Prince William is going to be a guest on Travis Kelce's podcast. Which is another kind of closeness.

Travis's brother Jason, trailing the podcast, gave listeners a slight clue in saying their special guest would be "six-foot-three prince from London, England", which narrows it down somewhat.

The podcast is due to appear at about 17.00 UK time, so we'll keep you updated later on what's said.

Image source, New Heights podcast

Prince William has been announced as a surprise guest on Travis Kelce's New Heights podcast just hours before the NFL star's widely expected wedding to pop megastar Taylor Swift.

In a clip posted on social media, co-host Jason Kelce introduces the Prince of Wales as: "The six-foot-three prince from London, England... the president of the English Football Association, the vice-Royal patron of the Welsh Rugby Union, the Duke of Cambridge, the Duke of Cornwall, the Lord of the Isles, Prince and Great Steward of Scotland, Earl of Chester and the Prince of Wales."

"That is quite an intro guys," replies William.

There has been no suggestion that either William, or Catherine, Princess of Wales, will be in attendance at Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift's wedding.

Image source, Reuters

Police have been putting up barricades around Madison Square Garden for several days and crews have been loading equipment and food into the stadium, according to the BBC's US partner CBS News.

Starting at 13:00 ET (18:00 BST) the following streets are closed to vehicles:

• Seventh Avenue between 30th and 34th Streets
• West 33rd Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues
• West 32nd Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues
• West 31st Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues
• West 31st Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues

Meanwhile, the following streets will be closed to pedestrians:

• West side of Seventh Avenue between 31st and 34th Streets
• West 33rd Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues

There will also be restricted access on:

• East side of 8th Avenue between 30th and 34th Streets
• West 33rd Street between 6th and 7th Avenues
• West 32nd Street between 6th and 7th Avenues
• West 31st Street between 6th and 7th Avenues

Image source, Getty Images

This week the couple donated $26m (approx. £19.5m) to over 20 charities - though still made no mention of any wedding.

Recipients include food banks, children’s hospitals, animal cruelty organisations and educational programmes, many located in meaningful locations for the couple: Nashville, New York, Kansas City, according to Swift’s publicist.

One of the recipients, City Harvest, a food bank in New York, issued a statement thanking the couple for a $1m donation.

Taylor Swift has been know to make generous charitable donations. As she travelled through different cities on her recent Eras tour, she made donations to local food banks.

Freya Scott-Turner
Favourite song: cardigan (cabin in candlelight version)

Image source, Star Max/GC Images

Something is definitely afoot at Madison Square Garden today.

Rumours that the 20,000 capacity arena would host queen of pop Taylor Swift's wedding have abounded for weeks, and a string of telltale signs over the past 24 hours have made this seem increasingly likely.

What we know

• The New York Police Department (NYPD) has released a list of road closures for both drivers and pedestrians on streets near Madison Square Garden from 13:00 ET (18:00 BST)

• The Madison Square Garden arena has no public listed events on its calendar for 2 or 3 July, while large trucks unloading signs reading “Garden Party”, stage equipment and lights have been seen at the venue throughout the week
• A city permit applying for a "Special Event at MSG" - obtained by the Associated Press said that 100 guests were to arrive at the venue on Thursday for a "pre party celebration". On the Friday schedule, the permit says that guests will arrive from 15:00 ET, before the "event" starts at 17:00 ET

• On Thursday, a stream of black SUVs pulled up to the venue with guests dropped off under a white canopy tent

• High-profile friends of the couple, from actress Lena Dunham to frequent collaborator Jack Antonoff were also spotted on Thursday evening in formal attire

What we don’t know

• If this rumoured wedding is the legal ceremony, or if that will take place separately

• The guest list – said to be 1,000 people strong - and any detail on who is in the bride or groom's parties

• How the venue has been transformed inside and if we can expect to see any photos or video from the event

• What Swift or Kelce plan to wear – and who has designed the outfits
• Who might be performing, and what's on the agenda

Image source, Madison Square Garden website

Image source, Getty Images

Here are some the celebrities who have been spotted in New York City and New York state in recent days ahead of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's wedding:

• Singer Dua Lipa
• Singer Camila Cabello
• Singer Sabrina Carpenter
• Actress Anya Taylor-Joy
• Longtime friend and singer Ed Sheeran
• Mother of the groom and US Traitors star Donna Kelce
• Fleabag actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge
• BBC presenter Graham Norton

You can read more about who could be on the star-studded guest list here.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

With Madison Square Garden now widely expected to be the site of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's much-anticipated wedding, every coming and going outside the venue has been closely watched.

Overnight, workers in bow ties and cream dinner jackets were pictured leaving the sports and entertainment arena, wheeling carts behind them.

Aerial footage earlier in the day showed a stream of black SUVs pulling up to the venue with guests dropped off under a white canopy tent for an event widely dubbed by the media as a pre-party and possible rehearsal dinner.

Nardine Saad
Live reporter

Swifties were shocked on 5 June when gossip website TMZ and the New York Post reported that Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce would tie the knot in midtown Manhattan in front of more than 1,000 people at Madison Square Garden - the famed 22,000-seat concert and sports arena.

The rumour gained more traction when New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani made a cheeky reference to the possibility, and when Swift appeared courtside for a 10 June New York Knicks championship match.

Rumours about the date and venue gained traction last week when the New York Times reported on “a multiple-day event” at the arena, attributed to the singer.

The newspaper reported that an intimate gathering of about 100 was set for 2 July and a splashier 1,000-guest celebration slated for 3 July, with a potential stage appearance.

TMZ and the New York Post, as well as celebrity media outlets, have continued to run with the rumours, citing their own insiders and Swifties who got invitations, but Swift and Kelce have made no public comments.

Road closures and a stream of deliveries to the venue all but confirmed that the rumours were true.

Jack Grey
Favourite song: All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor's Version) (From The Vault)

Image source, Getty Images

All eyes are on Madison Square Garden in New York City, where pop superstar Taylor Swift and her American football-player fiancé Travis Kelce are heavily rumoured to be hosting their wedding celebrations later this evening.

It's been billed as America's answer to a Royal wedding, but we've still not had confirmation that it's actually happening.

Black SUVs were seen pulling up to the sports and entertainment arena on Thursday evening, dropping guests off under a white tent - with media reports speculating it could have been the pre-party or rehearsal dinner.

Around 100 people were expected at the event on Thursday, ahead of a much larger celebration on Friday boasting up to 1,000 guests at the arena.

City officials have confirmed to the BBC that somebody applied for street closure permits in the area this weekend, but did not reveal who.

Sabrina Carpenter, Dua Lipa, Selena Gomez and Ed Sheeran are among the celebs rumoured to be on the guest list. But neither Swift nor Kelce have confirmed a thing.

Our reporters will be ready and waiting across New York to bring you the latest updates as the day unfolds. Stick with us.