Greece's first gay weddings were held yesterday when two couples, abetted by a sympathetic local mayor, defied the threat of criminal charges and the wrath of the Orthodox church to tie the knot on a tiny Aegean island.

A gay and a lesbian couple took advantage of the failure of Greek civil law to specify gender in matrimony, to wed at the municipal offices of the southeast Aegean island of Tilos.

"We are very moved and happy that we found someone to make our dream come true," said Evangelia Vlami, one of the newlyweds and spokeswoman for Greece's Gay and Lesbian Community (OLKE).