Gillian weds Julian
Posted at 6:23 AM (PST) on Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Gillian Anderson has quietly tied the knot with her longtime boyfriend, former journalist and documentary filmmaker Julian Ozanne, the actress's London rep confirms to PEOPLE.

Guests tell PEOPLE the low-key affair took place on Dec. 29 on Lamu's Shella island, off Kenya's Indian Ocean coast. Anderson, 36, and Ozanne, 42, were married in a civil ceremony by the local district officer and their union was blessed by a Kenyan priest.

The event was attended only by Anderson's immediate family - who had flown over from the U.S. - and a handful of close friends in the gardens of London socialite Kate Barker's Moroccan-style beach house. A Kenyan choir sang hymns in Swahili, and the bridesmaid was Gillian's 10-year-old daughter, Piper, from her previous marriage (to movie art director Clyde Klotz).

After the ceremony, the couple hosted a dinner of fresh lobsters, crab, and king-size prawns, and fireworks and a fire dancer provided the backdrop.

Veteran London Times Africa correspondent Jonathan Clayton, one of the groom's friends, delivered the keynote address and reminisced fondly of their times together covering the African wars of the 1990s when Julian was a correspondent with the London Financial Times.

Clayton said: "I can confirm it took place. It was a spectacular occasion. They were both delighted, but I would rather not go into details."