Church leaders have cleared the way for Britain's heir to the throne Prince Charles to marry his long-time companion and fellow divorcee Camillia Parker Bowles, although it could still be some time before wedding bells peal, The Times newspaper reported.
In a front page report, it said Rowan Williams, who as Archbishop of Canterbury is the worldwide leader of the Anglican church, had given his personal blessing for the Prince of Wales, 55, to marry Parker Bowles, 56.
Charles was previously married to Princess Diana, who died in a car crash in Paris in August 1997 -- a year after the couple divorced and two years after Parker Bowles divorced her own husband.
The issue of whether the royal heir can marry a divorcee has vexed constitutional experts for years, since the British monarch is the titular head of the Anglican church and thus officially expected to be beyond moral reproach.
Conservative Anglicans have long expressed opposition to Charles and Parker Bowles marrying in a church, given their well-documented adultery with each other before the breakdown of their respective marriages.
But The Times said the couple now were "actively considering wedding plans", after Williams -- well known for his liberal views -- dropped his objections to the union following secret talks with the prince.
Marriage is now a definite possibility, a friend of Charles who was "authorised" to speak on his behalf, was quoted in The Times as saying.
"It would be wrong to give the impression that they have not talked about it. That would not be right," the friend said. "But no one will rush into it or bounce them into it. It's a personal decision."
However, the friend added that any announcement would be impossible before the conclusion of a formal British police inquiry into Diana's death as part of an ongoing English coroner's inquest.
That means that nothing will happen until "next year at the earliest", the friend said.