Sir Ian McKellen will not dress up in costume and officiate your wedding

Officiating a wedding a serious responsibility, best left to religious officials, close friends and fictional wizards.

Sir Ian McKellen, best known for playing Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings, was offered $1.5 million to officiate Sean Parker's wedding as the wizard, The Daily Mail reports. Parker, a billionaire who founded Napster and was Facebook's first president, first made the offer three years ago.  

"I was offered $1.5 million dollars to marry a very famous couple in California, which I would perhaps have considered doing, but I had to go dressed as Gandalf," McKellen told The Daily Mail. "So I said, ‘I am sorry, Gandalf doesn’t do weddings.'"

Parker's fantasy-themed wedding to singer Alexandra Lenas, which caused some expensive damage to the redwood forest in which it was held, cost approximately $1.5 million dollars. Guests at the time included Sting, Sean Lennon and Emma Watson.

IMAGE: ERIC PIERMONT/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Each guest was custom-fitted in a Tolkienized Lord of the Rings costumes, because nothing says eternal love like cosplay.

Who doesn't see hairy ears and subsequently think of marriage?

McKellen, an accomplished theater actor is currently starring in 'No Man's Land' in London. He made the disclosure to The Daily Mail as part of a longer conversation about costumes.

"I don’t go dressing up,” McKellen told The Daily Mail. “Except in plays and things at places like this."

Ian McKellen's net worth is estimated to be in the tens of millions — but still, an extra $1.5 million wouldn't have hurt.

Sean Parker, wherever you are — next time you need a Gandalf, there are millions of people out there who are ready to dress in costume (raises hand) and will gladly accept your monetary offer. 

We won't even ask for a tip.

BONUS: Corgi tea party

 

New mayor of London Sadiq Khan is welcomed by Ian McKellen at swearing-in

Sadiq Khan, London's first elected Muslim mayor, was sworn in on a sunny Saturday at a multi-faith service at Southwark Cathedral.

Among those attending the occasion was venerated actor Ian McKellen, who greeted Khan before the ceremony. Former Labour leader Ed Miliband and Met police commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe were there, too.

In a brief speech, Khan said: “Some of you may not know, I grew up on a council estate, a few miles from here.” (He's said that line many times during the campaign.)

“I never dreamed I could be Mayor of London.”

The final results of the election showed that Khan beat Conservative Zac Goldsmith by 1,310,143 votes to 994,614 — 57% to 43%. Sky News politics editor Faisal Islam called it the biggest personal mandate in British history.

The vote counting process was prolonged due to "discrepancies" so the results weren't officially announced until 12:25 a.m. Saturday. Because of the delay, Khan won't officially start as mayor until 12:01 a.m. Monday morning. 

Khan, 45, the son of a Pakistani bus driver, beat the 41-year-old son of a billionaire in a campaign that saw Conservatives alleging Khan is "dangerous" and "pandering to extremists."

In his victory speech, Khan said:  “I’m so proud that Londoners have today chosen hope over fear and unity over division.”

"I hope that we will never be offered such a stark choice again. Fear doesn't make us safer, it only makes us weaker, and the politics of fear is simply not welcome in our city."

Many on Saturday praised Khan's victory. Tottenham MP David Lammy told the BBC: "If we ever get a prime minister of colour it will be because of what Sadiq Khan has achieved." 

(left to right) Karen Buck MP, former Labour leader Ed Miliband, Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe and London Fire Brigade Commissioner Ron Dobson.

IMAGE: YUI MOK/PA WIRE/PRESS ASSOCIATION IMAGES

But the backlash from the Conservatives' allegations of extremism continued on Saturday. Defence Secretary Michael Fallon gave a retraction of sorts of his earlier comments that Khan "couldn't be trusted" with London's security. 

“London is safe with a Conservative government working with the new mayor of London,” Fallon said. 

But he repeated his claim that Tooting imam Suliman Ghani, who has campaigned with Khan, supports the Islamic State — a claim that Ghani has vehemently denied.

Ghani demands an apology and is threatening legal action against the defence secretary.

And Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden, made an interesting point,