George Clooney arrives, beaming, for his wedding

Any minute now, the moment many celeb watchers and millions of fans thought would never happen, will in fact happen.

George Clooney, longtime bachelor, is about to become a husband again.

Yes, one of the world’s most eligible and sexy stars, Clooney, 53, is tying the knot with British human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin, 36, in a twilight ceremony in Venice, due to start momentarily.

And he sure looked overjoyed about it when he arrived in a water-taxi filled with family, including father Nick Clooney, at the wedding venue just minutes ago. Wearing a tuxedo (reported to be Armani), he was beaming from ear to ear and waving to photographers and onlookers who lined the Grand Canal and its bridges.

Their Saturday evening wedding, at Venice’s seven-star Aman Canal Grande Hotel, where Alamuddin stayed the night before, was expected to be the symbolic ceremony; the civil ceremony is expected to take place Monday at the 16th-century Palazzo Cavalli adjoining the Ca’ Farsetti, the Venice town hall where civil weddings routinely take place.

At around 5pm local time Saturday, guests were spotted arriving at the Aman Hotel for the ceremony. Clooney was photographed entering the venue wearing a tuxedo. He waved to fans and photographers.

Earlier Saturday, photographers snapped Clooney, Cindy Crawford and her husband and Clooney close friend, Rande Gerber, having late-morning coffee at a table on the garden terrace of the luxury Hotel Cipriani, where Clooney has been a regular guest over the years and where his wedding party is staying.

Hotel staff formed a protective barrier between Clooney and his guests, but then Clooney apparently waved them off, the Associated Press reported.

Outside the hotel, photographers had gathered in boats trying to catch a glimpse of the star. After someone yelled, “Is this really happening, George?” the actor feigned looking at his watch and yelled back: “Yeah, right now.”

Well, soon.

Clooney alerted the world on Sept. 7 to the impending nuptials when he announced at a charity event in Florence:”I met my lovely bride-to-be here in Italy, whom I will be marrying in a couple of weeks, in Venice, of all places.” He added, “I would just like to say to my bride-to-be, Amal, that I love you very much and I can’t wait to be your husband.”

It was widely thought the two, engaged since April, would wed at his Lake Como estate. But Venice it was. It’s a favorite destination for Clooney, a regular attendee at the Venice Film Festival. Besides, it’s widely considered one of the most romantic cities in the world.

Alamuddin, by the way, was expected to have her beautiful younger sister Tala as her maid of honor, and already the Italian and British media are calling her the potential Pippa Middleton of the George-and-Amal nuptials.

Paparazzi have been swarming in Venice’s picturesque locales along the Grand Canal since early Friday, when guests, including Matt Damon, Ellen Barkin, Clooney’s cousin Miguel Ferrer, began arriving. The couple arrived at the Cipriani, located on an island across from St. Mark’s Square, in a water-taxi named Amore, waving at onlookers as they passed under the Rialto Bridge and at the paparazzi snapping away in the sunshine.

The bachelor and bachelorette parties took place Friday night. The wedding-eve festivities caused a traffic jam in the Canal as about 30 boats crowded the canal to get a glimpse of bride arriving for her bachelorette night at the Aman, says People. She wore a red and black Alexander McQueen gown — short in the front with a train in the back — as she stepped off her water taxi, followed by an entourage of 14 women, including her sister and mother.

Italian media have reported that Clooney and Alamuddin were to be married by Walter Veltroni, the former mayor of Rome and a close Clooney pal. He was spotted by photographers arriving at the Aman on Saturday afternoon. The two met in Rome in 2007, according to Corriere della Sera, when Clooney received a Peace Summit Award for promoting peace in Darfur.

Singer Lana Del Rey was to serenade guests. Or was it Andrea Bocelli? Both had been rumoured.

The guest list was A-list all the way, including Bono, Barkin (Clooney’s Ocean’s Thirteen co-star who threw a bridal shower for Alamuddin in New York City in July), Emily Blunt and John Krasinski, Bill Murray, Sandra Bullock, Damon, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie and Julia Roberts.

People reported just a few weeks ago that Alamuddin’s parents were “thrilled” to be welcoming Clooney to the family.

Clooney was previously married to actress Talia Balsam for four years until their divorce in 1993. His recent loves have included Elisabetta Canalis and Stacy Keibler, both of whom married in recent years. It is the first marriage for Alamuddin.