Beyonce Knowles and Jay-ZBeyoncé Knowles and Jay-Z reportedly married in front of friends and family at Jay’s New York home on Friday night.

Preparations for the event are said to have started earlier in the day with the erection of a white tent to create a private area on the roof of Jay’s apartment building, then the delivery of tall silver candelabras and boxes of white orchids. Crates of food and bottles of champagne were spotted arriving, followed by tables and cream dining chairs for around 30 people.

White clad guests, including their families, Beyoncé’s former Destiny’s Child bandmates Kelly Rowland & Michelle Williams and Gwyneth Paltrow & Chris Martin, began to arriving in the early evening with a priest entering the building at around 8pm local time.

Beyoncé is said to have worn a low-cut white dress with thick straps, with her ringlet curls decorated with a white flower beneath her veil.

Sources close to the couple have confirmed to various US magazines that the ceremony took place but there has been no official confirmation of the wedding from either Beyonce or Jay-z’s camps.

One source told US Weekly: “It was amazing - very special, very private, very intimate.”

“Everyone had so much fun. It ended up being a wild party. [Jay-Z’s favourite DJ] DJ Cassidy was spinning and people partied until 4:30am.”

The couple have been subject to frequent wedding rumours during their six year relationship but sparked a new round of speculation after they applied for a marriage license in New York on Tuesday.

Another source added: “They’ve been planning to marry for a while but everything was thrown together at the last minute this week to avoid details being leaked.”

“Beyoncé’s dad said he’s sorry he couldn’t have invited [more people] to the wedding, but they’re keeping it small.”

“They were realistic about what could be achieved in the short time frame and it all went off wonderfully.”