Latest news with #SpandauBallet
Metro
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Metro
Martin Kemp reveals he might not actually be married Shirlie Holliman
Sorry, the video was not found Spandau Ballet's Martin Kemp has revealed that he's not entirely sure if he's been married for the The 63-year-old singer married Pepsi and Shirlie singer Shirlie Holliman in 1988 in a beautiful, picturesque – possibly not legally binding – ceremony. Martin revealed in a recent appearance on Good Morning Britain that he never actually received any paperwork confirming that he had married his partner. 'Shirlie and I, we got married in St Lucia on a cliff top overlooking the Caribbean, and it was beautiful. 'But there was one lady there, the ceremony was about as quick as, 'Martin, do you love Shirlie?', 'yes', 'Shirlie, do you love Martin?', 'yes', 'you're married'. 'I don't think we've ever got the actual paper to say that we're married, but listen, who needs a piece of paper when you love each other?' Earlier this month, speaking on Tracks Of My Years with BBC Radio 2's Vernon Kay retold his wedding day story, confessing his doubts about the nuptials. 'I'm waiting for Shirlie, and Shirlie turns up in this old pickup truck coming up the hill, and she climbs out in this tiny white mini dress, with big high heels on, and she's hobbling up to the point where we're going to get married. He added: 'To this day, Vernon, I doubt very much if we are married.' The couple has confessed in the past that they fell in love with one another at first sight. Martin told The Mirror: 'I remember being around my mum and dad's, my back was up against the sofa because I was sitting on the floor, watching Thursday night Top Of The Pops and Wham! came on.' He said he fell in love with her on screen: 'I saw Shirlie on there and absolutely fell in love through the television. You know, you fall into that bubble where you can't think of anything else. And that's how it was for me for a couple of weeks until we finally met.' Shirlie revealed in the same interview, it was the same for her: 'I saw you in a magazine. I just got that feeling, I think I've fallen in love. That's how my crush started. After that you starred in my dreams for a long time.' The couple got together with the help of George Michael, who Shirlie worked with as a backup singer for Wham! George called Martin over at a theatre premiere and Martin gave Shirlie his number, but she was too anxious to call at first. 'I thought he might be out of my league. I left his number in my pocket for ages. George was like, 'I just don't understand why you're not calling him'. 'I told him it was intimidating to call him. I mean, he was – he is – just so gorgeous. It was George who called Martin in the end. We were in his bedroom, and he picked up the phone, dialled the number and just gave me the phone. I was in at the deep end by then.' More Trending Martin gave all the credit to the Wham star for their relationship, saying he didn't believe that Shirlie would have ever plucked up the nerve to call. The couple went on to have two children, a daughter, Harley Moon and a son named Roman, who has become a presenter on The One Show and Capital FM's breakfast radio show. During his time with Spandau Ballet, Martin had eight UK top 10 albums, including a UK number one single In the hit song True. The band is also best known for songs such as Gold, Only When You Leave, and To Cut A Long Story Short. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: Wincey Willis, ITV's first female weather presenter, dies aged 76 MORE: Good Morning Britain viewers complain ITV show 'has descended into children's TV' MORE: 13 'cursed' horror films – from tragic on set deaths to mysterious 'haunted' props
Wales Online
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
Spandau Ballet's Martin Kemp says he never got his marriage paperwork
Spandau Ballet's Martin Kemp says he never got his marriage paperwork The 63-year-old said the fast wedding ceremony in St Lucia aroused his suspicions over its legitimacy Shirlie Holliman and Martin Kemp (Image: Jeff Spicer, Getty Images ) Spandau Ballet star Martin Kemp has said he never received his marriage paperwork following his wedding to former Wham! backing singer Shirlie Holliman. The 63-year-old said the fast wedding ceremony in St Lucia aroused his suspicions over its legitimacy, while speaking on ITV's Good Morning Britain. Asked about whether he was actually married to his wife, Kemp replied: "Shirlie and I, we got married in St Lucia on a cliff top overlooking the Caribbean and it was beautiful. "But there was one lady there, the ceremony was about as quick as, 'Martin, do you love Shirlie?', 'yes', 'Shirlie, do you love Martin?', 'yes', 'you're married'. "We've never got the actual paper to say that we're married, but listen, who needs a piece of paper when you love each other." Article continues below The bass player, who appeared as Steve Owen in EastEnders from 1998 to 2002, also spoke about raising the couple's son Roman Kemp, who is a TV and radio presenter. Kemp was asked about a scene in Channel 4's Celebrity Gogglebox, which the father and son duo appear on, where Roman questions his father's cooking ability and claims he used to put peanut butter in spaghetti bolognese. In the clip from the show, Roman told his father: "You never used to be good (at cooking), I remember. I came home from school once and you made me some spaghetti bolognese, you know what your secret ingredient was? Peanut butter." Article continues below Asked if the anecdote was true on the ITV morning show, Kemp replied: "Yeah, I did it once, but Roman wouldn't eat anything when he was a kid, he wouldn't even eat fruit, so don't listen to that. "I love doing Gogglebox, I love it with him. First of all, I get to see him, right? And we get round my house, because, you know what boys are like, boys never go home to their parents." With Spandau Ballet, Kemp had eight UK top 10 albums, including a number one, and one UK number one single in True. The band are also known for songs such as Gold, Chant No.1 (I Don't Need This Pressure On) and To Cut A Long Story Short.
RTÉ News
a day ago
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
Martin Kemp unsure if he is legally married
Spandau Ballet's Martin Kemp has said he never received official paperwork confirming his marriage to singer Shirlie Holliman, raising questions about whether the ceremony was legally binding. Speaking on ITV's Go od Morning Britain, the 63-year-old recalled their wedding in St Lucia, describing the cliff-top ceremony as "beautiful" but unusually brief. "There was one lady there, the ceremony was about as quick as, 'Martin, do you love Shirlie?' 'Yes.' 'Shirlie, do you love Martin?' 'Yes.' 'You're married,'" Kemp said. "We've never got the actual paper to say that we're married, but listen, who needs a piece of paper when you love each other?" Kemp and Holliman, a former backing singer for Wham!, have been together for more than 35 years. The couple share a son, presenter and broadcaster Roman Kemp. The father-and-son duo appear together on Celebrity Gogglebox, where they recently discussed Kemp's cooking skills. Roman claimed that his dad once added peanut butter to a spaghetti Bolognese. Asked if the anecdote was true, Kemp admitted: "Yeah, I did it once. But Roman wouldn't eat anything when he was a kid - he wouldn't even eat fruit, so don't listen to that." Kemp said he loves appearing on Gogglebox with Roman, adding: "First of all, I get to see him. You know what boys are like - boys never go home to their parents." Martin Kemp rose to fame as the bassist in Spandau Ballet, the new wave band known for hits including True, Gold, and Chant No.1. He later became a household name as Steve Owen in EastEnders a role he played from 1998 to 2002.
Irish Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Story of a Song review: How Spandau Ballet's Through the Barricades emerged from the Troubles
There's a surreal scene halfway through the latest episode of Aistear an Amhráin ( RTÉ One , Tuesday at 7pm), where the 1983 funeral of Belfast music roadie Thomas 'Kidso' Reilly is attended by big-haired pop threesome Bananarama. Two universes collided: Northern Ireland in the darkest days of the Troubles and the carefree world of London pop. 'This bubbly fun trio – why were they carrying wreathes?' wonders a friend of Kidso, who had gone to London to escape the grim reality of the Troubles and became acquainted with pop stars such as Bananarama and Spandau Ballet , then in their first flush of success as leaders of the New Romantic scene. Aistear an Amhráin is a documentary series unpacking the history of some of Ireland and the world's best-loved songs. It is the sort of show RTÉ should make more of. Clocking in at just 30 minutes, it doesn't wear out its welcome, and its selection of music is wide-ranging, with this season encompassing the old republican dirge Grace and the unofficial Cork sport's anthem , After All by the Frank and Walters. Episode three delves into Through the Barricades, the Spandau Ballet lament for barriers and prejudice that songwriter Gary Kemp reveals was informed by the shooting dead of Reilly by a British soldier. READ MORE 'I visited Kidso's grave,' remembers Kemp. He describes his dismay at the peace lines that divided Belfast by religion. 'I was shocked by the barricades stopping you crossing from one area into the next. I'd never seen anything like that. The resonance of seeing that, his [Reilly's] little photograph [on the headstone]. Very powerful [and] poignant. [It] stayed with me as an experience stronger than anything.' The episode has the challenging task of celebrating the chunky-quiffed pop of Spandau Ballet while also acknowledging the tragedy of Reilly's death – an innocent man whose killer would become the first British soldier tried and convicted of murder. 'My father had to sit through the whole trial and listen to the details, and listen to that British soldier blacken his son's name,' recalls Reilly's brother, Jim (who played drums for Belfast punk group Stiff Little Fingers). 'Make his son – who he had murdered in cold blood – out to be the perpetrator and him the victim.' The Irish influence on Through the Barricades goes beyond Belfast. In the mid-1980s, Spandau Ballet briefly became tax exiles in Dublin . In his digs in Stillorgan, Kemp was seized by a moment of inspiration and bashed out the tune over a few hours. He recalls tipping a hat to WB Yeat s with the line, 'It's a terrible beauty we've made'. 'Yeats, right,' he enthuses. Then, with heaviness in his voice, he adds: 'A terrible beauty encapsulated Ireland perfectly'.
Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
TV Review: Aistear an Amhráin sifts through Spandau Ballet's syrupy ballad Through the Barricades
Thomas 'Kidso' Reilly was murdered by a British soldier in West Belfast in 1983 as he ran away from an army foot patrol. Aistear an Amhráin (RTE One and RTE Player) tells the story, explaining how it inspired Spandau Ballet's power ballad Through the Barricades. This is a shame. Reilly's story is interesting. His brother Jim was the drummer in Belfast band Stiff Little Fingers; Thomas escaped the Troubles and ended up on the London pop scene ( the three members of Bananarama carried wreaths at his funeral ); you get a glimpse of the culture shock that would be familiar to anyone who left 1980s Ireland for a taste of Thatcher's London. The shame is that we have to listen to a lot of Spandau Ballet songs. Reilly worked with them for a while – when the song-writer Gary Kemp visited his grave in Belfast he saw the so-called Peace Wall dividing the two communities, giving him a title and theme for a Romeo and Juliet style ballad set in Belfast called Through The Barricades. Kemp tells the story himself. He's obviously a decent bloke with a good eye for a pop tune, clearly upset by both Reilly's death and a big wall in Belfast. He also tried to elevate the song, borrowing phrases from W.B. Yeats and T.S. Eliot. Y ou can decide for yourself if it works. I think Through the Barricades is a syrupy and formulaic ballad that could be set anywhere, but then I never heard a Spandau Ballet song I didn't hate. The song feels wedged in to the story here. Thomas Reilly's death wasn't syrupy, he was shot dead at 4pm after a minor altercation. The 18 year-old soldier who pulled the trigger served 26 months in jail before quietly returning to his regiment. Meanwhile Reilly's family were left to grapple with the grief and injustice. We see his parents being interviewed in archive footage, heartbroken that ( as they put it ) they have to visit the graveyard to see their son while his killer is re-integrated into regular life and effectively exonerated. The real star is the brother Jim Reilly, talking about his time in Stiff Little Fingers and recounting how his brother Thomas was a brilliant dancer. His band, Stiff Little Fingers, were famously non-sectarian. When asked how he feels towards Ian Thain, the man who shot his brother, Jim Reilly says he forgives him, without missing a beat. H e had been taught it's better to forgive than to let bitterness consume the rest of your life. There's a very good song to be written about the life and death of Thomas 'Kidso' Reilly. It isn't Through the Barricades. Read More
