Martin Kemp shares marriage admission
Martin Kemp has admitted he initially “didn’t see the point” in marrying his wife Shirlie Kemp. The Spandau Ballet bassist also revealed he “didn’t remember” signing any legal documents when he and the singer tied the knot almost four decades ago.
The 62-year-old’s reportedly met just weeks after Shirlie had performed ‘Young Guns’ on Top of the Pops with Wham! After five years of dating, the two headed to Saint Lucia in 1988 where they said ‘I do’.
A year later, they welcomed their first child, Harley Moon Kemp, before bringing their son Roman Kemp into the world in 1993. However, the father-of-two recently confessed he wasn’t sold on the idea of marriage in his younger years.
Roman, 31, broached the subject of his parent’s relationship on the pair’s shared FFS! My Dad Is Martin Kemp podcast. During the chat, Martin admitted he “didn’t see how getting married” would change anything between him and Shirlie.
Roman opened the conversation by saying: “Mum tells me you never wanted to get married?” “I didn't,” his dad confirmed. “I didn't see the point in it.”
When prompted to explain himself, the former EastEnders star said: “Well, when I was a kid, and I was in the band I loved mum so much.”
Seemingly unsatisfied with his father’s answers, Roman questioned how and why his mum had proposed.
“She just walked past the ring jewellers, and she said, ‘That's the ring I want’ and it was an engagement ring,” Martin explained.
“I understood mum wanting to get married at the time because I was in the band and I was travelling all over the world, and mum wanted some kind of signature on a bottom line saying we are together.”
“She wanted that, but for me, I didn't see how getting married was going to change the love that I had for Mum.”
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The Islington-born musician continued to say he “couldn’t see the step up” from their relationship and that it “made no difference” to him whether the pair said ‘I do’.
“I think I got married to Mum because Mum wanted to, but because I thought my love was 100 percent anyway, so I'm not putting marriage down at all,” he added.
Meanwhile, Martin also told Roman he was still determining whether he and Shirlie were actually ever legally married.
Recounting their clifftop wedding in the Caribbean, he said he forked out a “couple of hundred dollars” to a woman who quickly pronounced them man and wife.
He said that after the “basic” ceremony, he and his wife opened a bottle of champagne but never uttered vows.
“I’ve always avoided this,” he added. “I don’t want to tell mum I don’t think we’re married…I can’t remember signing anything.”
You can listen to episodes of Martin Kemp and Roman Kemp’s new podcast, FFS! My Dad Is Martin Kemp every Wednesday.
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