Awkward! All three of rocker Parfitt’s wives to say last farewell at his funeral
THE three wives of Status Quo guitarist Rick Parfitt all plan to go to his funeral.
The star will be laid to rest on Thursday in front of friends and family, including his estranged spouse Lyndsay – who he dumped by phone in October.
She will face the prospect of paying her respects alongside the rocker’s two exes, Marietta Boeker and Patty Beedon.
A source told The Sunday People: ‘All of the wives have expressed a wish to be at the funeral. It could be incredibly awkward. His closest showbiz pals will also be there but it’s not open to the public. He didn’t want a big, over-the-top thing, so it will be very simple.’
It is thought that all three women could lay a claim to the musician’s estimated £10million fortune. Each had children with Parfitt, who was said to be disorganised over his finances. The star was 68 when he died in a Spanish hospital on Christmas Eve of a serious infection following complications to a shoulder injury.
Third wife Lyndsay, 58, was by his side – even though he had ended their relationship and put their home in Marbella on the market.
Parfitt married first wife Marietta Boeker in 1973 and they had a son, Richard, and daughter Heidi, who died aged two after drowning in the family swimming pool.
Rick Jr is now a DJ in London with residencies at several nightclubs. Parfitt next walked down the aisle in 1988 with Patty Beedon. They had a son, Harry, a year later and he now lives in Geneva where he works as a biodiesel broker. She is a partner in a jewellery firm.
The rocker’s third wife was former fitness instructor Lyndsay Whitburn, who he married in 2006 – the same year he divorced Patty.
They went on to have twins Tommy and Lily in 2008.
A friend of the Parfitts, former Dragons’ Den star Hilary Devey, said: ‘My heart goes out to Lyndsay. The only person left looking after Rick Parfitt at the end was his loving wife Lyndsay who had arranged his admission to hospi- tal.’ Parfitt, who sold more than 125 million albums with Status Quo and had three heart attacks following a lifetime of rock and roll living, also had a string of business interests and properties. His estranged wife runs Status Homes, which the couple founded with a friend, and is also said to have managed a lot of their financial affairs.
Parfitt once revealed how he avoided organising his finances and left it to Lyndsay to sort out.
He said: ‘I know there’s enough money there so I’m not really bothered.’