Is a Farang / Thai ( female) marriage held in Thailand automatically recognised in the UK ?

So, firstly let's get it out of the way that NO, this isn't about me and at the risk of sounding like someone sitting in a STI clinic "I'm honestly just asking for a friend"

So, a mate of mine here just went and got married to a lovely looking Thai girl, fairly quickly after meeting her and quit out of the blue - some background - she lives here in the Uk ( visa status unknown but perhaps she may even be a full UK citizen for all I know). Anyway, so my mate got engaged to his beauty back in October / November time and they popped off to Thailand for Christmas there for a holiday and low and behold he's just announced on facebook to all his friends and family back home that he'd actually gone ahead and got married to his finance on the 1st of Jan ! ( The guy doesn't hang around it seems - ha and comments about Hmmm "OH, YEAH, so I wonder why so fast etc" I'll leave up to other (even) more cynical friends than me :-).

So, my question is ( as I was asked and couldn't answer) - so is the ceremony that he's just posted lots of from, of him all dressed up in some fancy Thai style clothes and his bride in her lovely dress etc, all complete with flowers and Monks in attendance, along with a complete wedding "backdrop" being built for pics and lots of her family i attendance etc "IT" - i.e IS that him actually fully, legally married now ?

Or I wondered was it more like the usual gay weddings that aren't fully recognised and so is maybe more like a Thai Monks blessing type service and they'll now need to go on and register / perform a civil ceremony too there ( and / or here in the UK) as well ?

And likewise if that IS it, is that Thai ceremony now fully recognised here in the UK as "IT" also and if so is that him / them now 100% fully and legally married here too, with all the legal benefits that that gives for her ( and possible future ramifications for him - do prenups work in Thailand I wonder ?! ).

Again, I'm purposefully trying not to sound either cynical or distrusting as he's a nice guy and I'm sure the girl he's picked is absolutely lovely too ( I haven't met her ) but of course being a realist and as we've all heard 100 stories of doom and gloom in later years and as my mates asked is that "wedding" not more for show and if it comes down to it (legally) is it all not fairly worthless anyway here in the UK - my thoughts on that was "no, I don't think so and assuming they register the marriage on their return to the UK then that's him all hitched up and done - although hopefully not literally mind !"

So, does anyone know the ACTUAL factual answer to that point perhaps ??

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