Hi, I'm new to this great site and a keen home baker, but I foolishly agreed to make a friends wedding cake which is a 3 tier cake, 2 round cakes topped with a mad hatters cake (Alice in wonderland theme) I am panicking now because most suggest a Madeira cake because its firm to carve and holds the fondant well but my attempts have been disastrous with holes in the middle! I want to know if I can use a regular Victoria sponge mixture, will this hold up to stacking and carving?  Any help gratefully received!     

Yes, it will. Victoria sponge is fine to carve, stack etc and as you say is easier as you can bake it in layers.
 

Hi, you may want to try out a different madeira recipe?  This is one an old friend gave me (so I don't know where it originated, or even if it is a true madeira) and I have had great success with it.

For an 8" round:

375g plain flour

7.5ml baking powder

315g caster sugar

315g softened butter (unsalted)

5 eggs

45ml milk

Bake at 160C for 90mins or until cooked.

Hope that works for you!
 

I personally dislike both, I use this http://fromscratchsf.wordpress.com/2011/07/26/white-cake-part-3-with-recipe/ for my vanilla cake and haven't had any issues with it. I've done both the all egg yolk and whole egg version. 

Thank you all for your advice, I think I will try both recipes before I decide! I am very nervous about the stacking having never done it before so I really need to be confident with a firm cake!

Just partially freeze it before hand. I freeze all my cakes, makes them easier to handle and more moist. 

I use a Victoria sponge (ie equal weights of butter, sugar, eggs (cracked weight) and flour) for all my vanilla sponge cakes.

I marzipan and sugarpaste my cakes, as well as carve when necessary. 

HTH

Suzanne x