Judge hopes Keira Knightley wedding will encourage others to wed

Sir Paul Coleridge said he hoped the marriage, which saw Miss Knightley, 28, driven from the wedding with her new husband in a Renault Clio and guests wearing flip flops, would encourage other young couples to get married without having to worry about spending thousands on lavish ceremonies.

Sir Paul, who has launched the Marriage Foundation, said he felt the costs of weddings in Britain had got out of hand recently, with the average price tag to tie the knot now £20,000.

He also backs tax breaks for married couples, which he thinks will support families and encourage couples to wed – but he said these breaks must be substantial to have an impact on family life.

He told The Times: “If people thought they could not get married unless they had a glittering celebrity-style wedding, I think that’s very tragic.”

Miss Knightley married Klaxons band member James Righton at a ceremony at a town hall in Provence, wearing a Chanel dress she had worn before. The couple got engaged in May 2012 after being introduced by mutual friend Alexa Chung, and they live in East London.

Sir Paul, an expert in family law, launched his charity the Marriage Foundation a year ago to promote the benefits of long term relationships and encourage people to try and keep families together.

But his views have attracted criticism.

The father of three and grandfather said ministers were looking at the “wrong issue” in gay marriage, and said they should be finding ways for how they could support married couples instead. He said the cost of broken families has now reached £44 million a year.

Sir Paul, 63, added: “The public needs to appreciate the scale of the problem.”

His comments have led to 12 complaints being lodged against him with the Office for Judicial Complaints.