George Clooney and Amal Alamuddin Make First Public Appearance after Marriage

Newlyweds George Clooney and Amal Alamuddin made their first public appearance as a married couple.

The pair who tied the knot at a ceremony in Venice yesterday, waved at wellwishers from a motor launch on Venice's Grand Canal.

The couple were leaving the Aman hotel where they had exchanged vows in the presence of their celebrity friends including Bono, Cindy Crawford and Matt Damon.

As they set off to join friends and family at Venice's Cipriani hotel, the star couple stopped traffic, as 20 launches packed with photographers and police surrounding them.

Wearing a grey suit and tie, Clooney and his new wife, who was wearing a white dress embroidered with pink and fuschia designs, waved at surprised tourists on a water bus.

The wedding group had reportedly partied until 2am after Clooney and Alamuddin entered the palazzo through an arch of white roses where they exchanged vows.

Cindy Crawford's husband, Rande Gerber, is thought to have been best man

Waiters wearing fezzes served lobster while Clooney revealed his nerves as he prepared to give up his bachelor life, his hand shaking as he cut the cake.

A jazz trio and string quartet played the A list actor's favourite songs, including Nat King Cole's "When I fall in love."

The announcement that the couple had tied the knot on Saturday was made by Clooney's spokesman Stan Rosenfield when the party was under way.

"George Clooney and Amal Alamuddin were married today (September 27) in a private ceremony in Venice, Italy," Rosenfield said in Los Angeles.

The announcement came as a surprise since the couple are officially due to wed in a civil ceremony in Venice on Monday (29 Sept) rendering the marriage legal in Italy.

The wedding was Clooney's second after he was married in 1989 to actress Talia Balsam.