SURPRISE WEDDING
After making it through some rocky patches in their relationship, the couple have secretly renewed their vows
It’s been a rough couple of years for Amal and George Clooney’s marriage, with near-constant rumours out of Hollywood that the pair were sadly just one more argument away from a divorce court.
Friends of the couple, who had been increasingly withdrawn from their wide social circle since their twins were born in 2017, were troubled by signs of friction within the marriage, and some even predicted they wouldn’t survive the notorious seven-year itch.
Thankfully, it seems George and Amal have turned their marriage around – and an insider says they even renewed their vows in a show of love and support for one another!
“With the pandemic restrictions, they could only do something very small and intimate, but that worked for them – this was all about reiterating some old promises to each other, and making some new ones,” says our source. “Of course, George and
Amal love a party, so they’re both hoping to make it a double celebration in May for George’s 60th birthday. But it will all depend if the pandemic situation improves.”
‘Amal devised a strategy to sort out their problems’
“For George’s part, he argued that he never really wanted children before he met Amal, and as much as he loves the twins, he felt Amal could handle the day to day much better than he could,” says our source. “That caused a lot of tension between them, but Amal is far too strong a woman to take that kind of attitude and would fight back.”
RECONNECTING AGAIN
According to sources, things became so unbearable that Amal would often remain in their English country home, while George spent more time in LA or Lake Como.
“It was a miserable existence and neither of them were happy,” the insider says.
But in the past six months, Amal, 42, “put her foot down” and insisted they lock down during the pandemic together at their home in Studio City, LA.
While forced together for the longest time since their breathtaking Italian wedding in 2014, Amal formulated a plan to get their marriage back on track. “Amal is a logical woman and devised a strategy to sort out their problems,” says a source.
“They’ve been working on the big and little things. They’ve been reconnecting on romantic sunset hikes in the Hollywood Hills, which they’ve both found has really helped.
“She also asked him to spend at least two hours of quality time with the twins around work commitments, and the big one – he handed over his phone.
“Not that George has ever strayed, to my knowledge, but Amal was feeling uncomfortable with the number of work calls he’d been putting in with the likes of Katie Holmes, Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Lawrence and Shailene Woodley.
“But she was soothed by the fact he handed it over without question and she found nothing on it but professional chitchat about possible scripts and roles.”
With the show prerecorded this year because of COVID restrictions, producers of reality favourite I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! knew they had to go all-out to keep fans entertained. But did they take things too far? That’s what viewers have been left wondering as the show, which featured dangerous trials, comes to a close. In fact, Grant Denyer, Pettifleur Berenger, Jack Vidgen and Travis Varcoe all came close to having serious medical repercussions due to hypothermia after they had to plunge into freezing cold water to pull a lever at the bottom of a tank. Grant, 43, has since said the trial came close to “breaking” him. “It actually hurt a lot to the point where medics were called for all four of us in the challenge.
They were deeply concerned for our wellbeing because we’re at the point where our organs were getting close to shutting down,” he said.
In a trial the week before, Toni Pearen, 48, was bitten several times by carpet pythons, also sparking concern. “Toni was bitten three or four times by a snake, and no one helped her,” one fan said on Twitter. “I’m sorry, but that is VERY wrong. That’s one step too far.”
Singer Paulini Curuenavuli, 38, who took part in this year’s show, admits the trials were as tough as they looked. “Honestly, I literally thought I was going to die,” she says of the very first challenge she was faced with – jumping out of a helicopter into a river below. “As the chopper door opened I thought, ‘This is it! The last thing I’m going to see on this earth is my hair whipping around my face.’”
A show representative insists all the trials are carefully monitored and that medics are on standby the whole time. At no point were any of the contestants in serious jeopardy.
“Network 10 and ITV Studios take the health and wellbeing of its cast very seriously,” a spokesperson told Yahoo as the reality series was called into question.
‘I’m sorry, but that is VERY wrong. That’s one step too far’
Despite how tough the trials were, and outrage from some fans, the contestants Woman’s Day spoke with all said they were glad they did the show as it had ultimately allowed them to confront some of their biggest fears.
Jack, 24, who suffered the most during the gruelling ice-water challenge, admits he holds no ill will towards scheming producers. “[I have] no regrets at all – not a single one,” he says of taking part in the show. “I had the time of my life and even though it was challenging in a lot of ways, I felt like I discovered more of myself while I was in the jungle.”