Today, 23rd February 2013,  Sarah Hayes - known in Crosswordland as Arachne, the Spider Lady - is marrying her partner Nick.  Enigmatist has prepared this special puzzle to mark the occasion.

Weaving in blue back and forth from top to bottom, and in pink down and up from left to right are two further examples of the theme (* replaces definitions).  The eleven letters in the gold squares may be arranged to form a relevant identity.  Finally, one of the unchecked rows is a cryptic representation of today’s event.