The wedding of former chancellor George Osborne has been disrupted by a protest from environmental group Just Stop Oil.

About 200 people, including a number of well-known politicians and journalists, gathered in the Somerset village of Bruton on Saturday to mark the 52-year-old’s marriage to Thea Rodgers, 40, who worked as his aide during his time at the Treasury.

The pair, who have two sons, reportedly began dating in 2019 and announced their engagement in April 2021.

As they emerged from the church after the ceremony, a woman stepped forward and began throwing handfuls of confetti, similar in colour to the orange powder often used by Just Stop Oil, over their heads.

The woman who has thrown orange confetti over George Osborne follows him to throw more.
The woman who has thrown orange confetti over George Osborne follows him to throw more. Photograph: Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images

She then followed them and continued to empty the confetti from a union jack bag over them until being chased away by a security guard.

A tweet later posted on Just Stop Oil’s official Twitter account read: “You look good in orange @George_Osborne – congratulations to the newlyweds.”

Later posts included links to articles from Osborne’s time as chancellor, including one in which he is quoted saying he didn’t want the UK to be “out there in front of the rest of the world” in its efforts to cut emissions because he wanted to “provide for the country the cheapest energy possible … consistent with us playing our part in an international effort to tackle climate change”.

Security steps in to stop the woman who is continuing to empty a bag of orange confetti from a union jack bag onto the former chancellor.
Security steps in to stop the woman who is continuing to empty a bag of orange confetti from a union jack bag onto the former chancellor. Photograph: Just Stop Oil/Twitter

Among the guests at the wedding, held at the 14th-century St Mary’s Church, were former prime minister David Cameron and his wife, Samantha, and longstanding minister Michael Gove, currently the levelling up secretary.

Also present were former foreign secretary Lord Hague, former health secretary Matt Hancock, and ex-governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney.

From the Labour benches, Ed Balls, who was shadow chancellor for four years, and with whom Osborne is set to launch an economics podcast, attended with wife Yvette Cooper, who is currently the shadow home secretary.

Several prominent journalists – including former Newsnight presenter Emily Maitlis, former Sky News political editor Adam Boulton, and Today Programme host Nick Robinson – were also on the guest list.

The wedding comes after an email was sent anonymously to invited guests and a number of journalists earlier in the week. There were reports that Osborne had asked police to investigate alleged online harassment.

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