Cliff Notes – Martin Kemp reveals he might not actually be married to Shirlie Holliman
- Martin Kemp disclosed on Good Morning Britain that he has no official paperwork confirming his marriage to Shirlie Holliman, despite their 1988 ceremony in St Lucia.
- The couple, who met in 1983, have expressed doubts about the legality of their marriage, with Kemp stating, “I doubt very much if we are married.”
Martin Kemp reveals he might not actually be married to Shirlie Holliman
Spandau Ballet’s Martin Kemp has revealed that he’s not entirely sure if he’s been married for the past 37 years.
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.’
George Michael introduced the pair (Picture: Michael Putland/Getty Images)
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.