The bride wore a blue garter... but were Jerry and Sun king eclipsed by Mick’s model bridesmaids?
And the guest list made for a colourful bunch, too
AT 11.05am yesterday, a Range Rover disgorged Jerry Hall into the damp chill outside St Bride’s Church on Fleet Street in London.
And while it was doing so, the former supermodel, in an ice-blue silk Vivienne Westwood dress, managed to flash her garter belt to the delight of the small crowd.
She appeared nervous, toying with her blonde locks, but it could not be said that the 59-year-old bride was blushing. She was once married to Mick Jagger, after all.
Officially, Ms Hall and Rupert Murdoch wed on Friday at a civil ceremony, but both were said to have looked on yesterday’s hourlong blessing as ‘the real thing’.
From inside the church came a ragged but happy cheer as the couple followed their vows with ‘a big juicy kiss’. Afterwards, former Rolling Stone Bill Wyman said: ‘Jerry has simply not stopped smiling. She was ecstatic, they both were. It was fantastic.’
While the sight of Jerry brought cheers, it was her daughters from rom her marriage to Mick, Georgia May and Elizabeth, who almost stole the show. Also in blue, they were among the bridesmaids, along with Mr Murdoch’s daughters Grace and Chloe from his marriage to Wendi Deng.
It was Mr Murdoch who led the exodus of the British Press from Fleet Street by moving his titles, including The Sun and The Times, to Wapping in 1986. Now, aged 84, he was back to marry a 6ft Texan model. Fleet Street has spun a tall tale in its time, but even its most fanciful practitioners could not have dreamt this up.
Yet the couple’s delight was undeniably genuine. So too was the goodwill from their eclectic guests, including Conservative minister Michael Gove, artist Tracey Emin, composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, actor Michael Caine and Bob Geldof.
During the reception afterwards, Mr Murdoch thanked his new bride for ‘bringing out the best in me’. His son Lachlan quoted Winston Churchill in his best man’s speech: ‘My most brilliant achievement was my ability to be able to persuade my wife to marry me.’ He added: ‘Dad, you pulled off a ******* miracle.’
Next is the honeymoon, expected to be in Mexico aboard Mr Murdoch’s 220ft superyacht.