Greece sees first same-sex marriage at Athens’ city hall

Same-sex marriage was legalised in Greece around three weeks ago. Pic/AP

A Greek novelist and his partner became the first same-sex couple to be married in Athens' city hall, three weeks after the legalisation of same-sex marriage in Orthodox Christian Greece.

The Greek capital's mayor officiated at the civil wedding on Thursday of Petros Hadjopoulos, who writes under the pen name Auguste Corteau, and lawyer Anastasios Samouilidis.

Hadjopoulos said the event was "a dream that we didn't dare entertain when we were in our teens".

"There is a symbolism to this," he told The Associated Press. "I understand that (marriage) doesn't work for everyone, but for people who grew up in Greece in the 1980s and 90s, when guys like us lived a very lonely existence, even symbols have a great value."

The couple arrived with their dog, to the applause of more than two dozen guests.

A cross-party majority of Greek lawmakers approved same-sex marriage in a vote on February 15, despite strong opposition from the socially conservative Orthodox Church.

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