Geldof girl weds at church where mum and sister were laid to rest
WEDDINGS don’t come more poignant than this. Yesterday, Fifi Geldof married sand sculptor Andrew Robertson near her family home – at the church where the funerals for both her sister Peaches and mother Paula Yates took place.
The vows were made at St Mary Magdalene & St Lawrence in Faversham, Kent, a place close to Fifi’s heart, with Peaches buried in the church’s graveyard just outside.
Peaches’s widower, Thomas Cohen, led the couple’s sons Phaedra, four, and Astala, three, into the service, while Fifi’s other sister Pixie, 25, followed shortly after.
PR girl Fifi, 33, who has previously tried to remain out of the limelight, went to great lengths to keep the wedding under wraps. Locking down her social media, she even gave her guests different wedding dates to deflect attention. But despite her best efforts, the world’s press was camped outside on the day.
The wedding is a rare happy occasion for the Geldof family in the church, following Peaches’ funeral there in 2014 after she died from a drug overdose. She was buried near where her mother Paula’s ashes were placed after she also died of an overdose in 2000. Ashes of Paula’s lover Michael Hutchence, who committed suicide in 1997, were buried with Paula’s.
The family home, where Peaches’s father Sir Bob Geldof lives, is attached to St Mary’s, with a door between them, and I am told the family and the vicar, the Rev Tracey Bateson – who conducted Peaches’s funeral – have become incredibly close.
She told me earlier this year that she couldn’t disclose anything about the wedding but did reveal that she helped the couple get a special licence for £200 from the local bishop to ensure the wedding wasn’t announced in advance as is normally required.
During the service, Fifi wore a gown by Jasper Conran and even her dog Lola was properly attired, wearing a custom collar covered in flowers and pearls which the wedding rings were attached to.
Guests had their bags searched and phones confiscated to prevent photos from being taken.
After the main event, they headed to a huge marquee nearby for the reception, where everyone was treated to a huge party and even fireworks.