Surprise! it’s a wedding!

So, Bennifer Part II has begun. But Jen and Ben are not the only stars to have married quietly. Here, Rania Habib chooses her top five secret celebrity ceremonies.

It's the fad of the moment. Britney and Kevin have done it. So have J.Lo and Marc Anthony. Gwyneth and Chris have been there, done that, as have Julia Roberts and Danny Moder. Renee Zellweger and Kenny Chesney have also done it, joining the ranks of Seal and Heidi Klum. Worst of all, and to my absolute horror, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner have just done it.

Secret celebrity weddings. Great most of the time because they spare us unnecessary media hype and chaos and because they give those poor celebrities a little slice of private life. But when it concerns Ben Affleck, I remain stubborn about being informed, whether the rest of the world knows or not.

Ever since I hugged, kissed and quickly scared off my celebrity fantasy at a Montreal nightclub a few years ago, I have harboured an unhealthy crush on Ben. I've been convinced that our paths would cross again.

But now he has gone to the Turks and Caicos Islands and married a pregnant Jennifer Garner … without warning me first!

After all, it was media hype that allegedly caused Ben and Jennifer Lopez to cancel their wedding and eventually break-up (phew!) Ever since hovering helicopters monitored Madonna's 1985 wedding to Sean Penn, most celebrities (no, not you Star Jones) have opted for the option of outsmarting the people and making sure they celebrate their unions away from preying eyes.

Sure, you might say that celebrities lose their right to a completely private life by definition, but there are certain events such as weddings, births and deaths that should be kept private.

In order to keep weddings private, celebrities dodge the paparazzi, answer questions vaguely, send out fake wedding invitations … or blatantly fool the press. When Brooke Shields and now-husband Chris Henchy were planning to tie the knot in 2001, the actress leaked to the press the wedding was to take place in Catalina. The couple did hit the beach with her in a white dress and helicopters hovered and descended, but there was no wedding. Instead, Shields and Henchy quietly married in Florida the next week.

Very smart. Brooke and Chris were happy, we were happy, but the paparazzi were not.

I pay my respects to those savvy celebs who have taken the high, albeit complicated, road to a secret wedding. And now let's take a look at five of the best.

The recipe to a successful secret wedding? Remote location, very few guests and a low-key ceremony.

Britney Spears and Kevin Federline, September 2004

The semi-controversial pair started dating in February 2004 while Federline was still engaged to Shar Jackson who was also pregnant with his child, and while Britney had just very recently annulled a 55-hour whirlwind marriage.

Spears and Federline sneakily tied the knot a month ahead of their scheduled time, only telling the 15 invited guests about the ceremony the day before. The low-key nuptials were held at a friend's house in California. The couple are now expecting their first child.

Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck, June 2005

The highly photogenic pair finally tied the knot on the Turks and Caicos Islands ending all speculation about their status and whether Jen was with or without child; a little Bennifer is indeed on the way. The pair, who met on the set of Daredevil in 2002, exchanged their vows in a low-key ceremony that took place in front of friends and family. This is the first marriage for Ben and the second for Jen.

Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin, December 2003

The Oscar winner and the nicest rock star in the world remained tight-lipped about their relationship from the start and later shocked the world by announcing Gwyneth was pregnant and followed a week later by revealing that they were married. Martin and Paltrow celebrated their union with a few close friends and family at the San Ysidro Ranch in California. The couple now have a baby daughter, infamously named Apple.

Julia Roberts and Danny Moder, July 2002

The Pretty Woman actress sent out a cryptic invitation reading "Come celebrate Independence Day with us" in order to cover up for her wedding to cameraman Danny Moder. The couple had a low-key midnight ceremony at Roberts' New Mexico Ranch and surprised their guests with their wedding. Following a series of IVF treatments, the couple are now the proud and beaming parents of twins Phinnaeus Walter Moder and Hazel Patricia Moder.

Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony, June 2004

In a surprising turn of events, J.Lo married her third husband in a small secret ceremony at her Beverly Hills home. Just five months after her super high-profile relationship with Ben Affleck, Lopez decided to keep things quiet with what we hope will be her last husband. Not one to be completely subdued, J.Lo wore a Vera Wang gown and an eye-popping Dh49 million worth of bling.