JESSICA WRIGHT marries fiancé WILLIAM LEEKEMP in style in Majorca
SEAL THEIR LOVE SURROUNDED BY FAMILY AND FRIENDS
When Jessica Wright and William Lee-Kemp became husband and wife in a ceremony that was both spectacularly extravagant while also wonderfully intimate, it was the fulfilment of a long- held wish to marry surrounded by all those they love.
“I will never give up on a dream,” Jess tells hello! as the couple exclusively share their beautiful wedding photographs, capturing every moment of their magical day, which saw three incredible gowns, 12 bridesmaids, a magnificent church ceremony and a grand banquet at a Spanish castle.
“There were so many times we thought that we might have to go ahead with a smaller wedding due to all the restrictions, but we kept holding out. Someone could well say we are persistent, and I think that is probably now one of my middle names!”
BRIDE’S DELIGHT
Their determination led to their wishes coming true when their nearest and dearest gathered in Majorca to witness the long-awaited nuptials on 9 September, which had been postponed from June.
The big day saw Jess’s brother, radio and TV presenter Mark, taking on the key role of master of ceremonies and his wife, actress Michelle Keegan, among the bridesmaids. They also included Jess’s younger sister Natalya and the bride’s two other sisters- in- law, Hollie Kane Wright (the wife of Jess’s professional footballer brother, Josh) and the groom’s sister Holly Lee-Kemp, as well as the bride’s closest friends and cousins.
“I didn’t want to leave anyone out,” says 36-year-old Jess, as she tells us how they were all with her on the morning of the wedding, getting ready in her luxury bridal suite at the exclusive resort St Regis Mardavall, joined by her mum Carol and nan Irene. “To have my sister, cousins, sisters-inlaw and best friends by my side only made the day more special.”
But this was always going to be more than a destination wedding in search of sunshine, as the Spanish island is a place of real significance to both families.
‘ My lover and my best friend is now legally my husband’
“Marrying in Majorca was so important to both Will and I,” says former The Only Way is Essex star Jess. It was where the couple enjoyed their first proper holiday together, where Jess has enjoyed many childhood holidays, and where businessman Will’s family have a second home. “There really was no other place for either of us,” explains 38-year-old Will. “I’ve been coming here since I was little; it literally is like a home from home.”
It was also important for Jess to exchange their vows in a church ceremony. She tells us: “When I first mentioned that to Will, he said: ‘If we are going to be in Majorca, isn’t the point to get married under the sun surrounded by the beauty of the island?’ But I grew up always wanting a church wedding, I dreamt of walking down an aisle. I have always prayed to God, and I am quite religious and spiritual.”
When they first visited the Basílica de Sant Francesc, in the heart of the old town in Palma, they “fell madly in love with it”: “From the moment we walked in, we both welled up; there is just something so special about it. We knew it was the place for us.”
The 130 wedding guests took their seats for the 3pm ceremony, which began with the arrival of the bridesmaids – wearing off-the
‘It felt very Princess Grace; almost regal
looking but with a modern twist’
‘ I grew up always wanting a church wedding, I dreamt of walking down an aisle’
shoulder floor-length dresses from Hollie’s Tripletta Bridal Couture collection and jewellery by Pandora – who walked up the aisle to Songbird by Eva Cassidy.
Then came the moment neither bride nor groom will ever forget, as Jess entered on the arm of her proud father, Mark Sr, to I’m Kissing You by Des’ree from the Baz Luhrmann film Romeo + Juliet.
“I’d already had in my mind, even before I’d met Will, that it was the song I wanted to walk down the aisle to one day. Then we watched the film together and we both said: ‘That is the song.’
“Hearing it in that beautiful church with my dad at my side, and to see Will at the end of the aisle, I would relive that many times over if I could. I felt so much elation, so much happiness I could not stop smiling,” says Jess, who looked stunning in a white couture gown by Milla Nova with plunging neckline, fitted sleeves, long veil and a spectacular train.
“It felt very Princess Grace [Kelly]; almost regal looking but with a modern twist,” explains Jess of her choice of dress, which she wore with her hair up, adorned with a tiara from Maria Elena
‘ I felt so much elation, so much happiness. I could not stop smiling’
‘She looked so beautiful. The dress was unbelievable; even more spectacular than I thought it would be’ Will
“I don’t think I really recovered from that moment for the whole day. I had that in my top pocket all day, and it started the emotions so they were already heightened by the time the ceremony began.”
A gospel choir sang Oh Happy Day and All You Need is Love, and Josh read a poem he had written, says Jess, “proclaiming his love for me growing up and how he has found a new best friend in Will”. The couple then exchanged traditional vows and their bespoke platinum and gold wedding rings, to be declared husband and wife to cheers and clapping that echoed around the church as they walked back down the aisle to This Will Be (An Everlasting Love) by Natalie Cole. “It was the perfect upbeat and uplifting song,” she adds.
The wedding party was transported to Castillo de Bendinat in Calvià, built in the 19th century in the distinctive neo-gothic style of a European castle. “With the most amazing grounds with terraces and courtyards, it was
‘ Marrying in Majorca was so important to both Will and I’
breathtaking. There was nowhere else that we loved as much,” says Jess, who changed into her second, equally spectacular gown, by Vivienne Westwood, with a fitted strapless bodice and ruffled full skirt and with her hair restyled into a loose Hollywood wave.
“I had a vision for the whole day that I wanted it to be Hollywood glamour combined with this amazing regal place, with a theme of black, white and gold. I decided on everything from feathers in the table floral centrepieces to the poems on the back of menus,” says the handson bride of how each guest had a personalised poem tailor-made for them by WordItRhyme, as they were seated to enjoy a menu including Galician beef fillet with charred spring onions, sea bream with oven- dried tomatoes, and homemade ravioli with summer truffles.
For dessert there was a reminder of home with sweet treats named after their dogs: papillon/ chihuahua mix Cooper’s Snicker surprise and miniature Yorkshire terrier Bella’s mango and passionfruit cheesecake – with edible pictures of each of them.
‘I wanted the day to be Hollywood glamour combined with this amazing regal place’
OUT OF THIS WORLD
In his role as master of ceremonies, Mark lived up to all their expectations, sharing duties with the groom’s brother Jonny. “I’m used to Mark doing that kind of thing, so I knew he’d be great, but Will was blown away by how brilliant they both were,” says Jess.
“I think there is a career there for Mark. I think he could do it professionally,” quips Will, as he tells us of the moment his new brother-inlaw announced their entrance to the banquet. “As we came in everyone was on their feet, cheering and loud music was playing. It was out of this world.”
It was a fitting role for Jess’s brother as it was Mark, convinced they would be well matched, who arranged their first meeting in July 2018. Less than two years later, Will proposed in the French ski resort of Courchevel in February 2020. “It is crazy to think Mark set us up; he just knew we would be so well suited,” Jess told us at the time, admitting she had all but given up on finding love, but Mark reassured her, saying: “Someone with a heart like yours will never be alone.”
Of Will coming into her life, her mum Carol told us: “It took a long time for Jess to find the perfect man for her, but when she told me he makes her laugh uncontrollably and is her best friend, I knew he was The One.”
She only needs to look to her parents, Carol and Mark Sr, to discover the secret of a happy marriage, and to her brothers, Mark, who wed Michelle in 2015, and Josh and his wife Hollie, who married three years later.
“My family are all very much in love and very happy, just like Will’s family. I think they had times when they thought: ‘Will Jess ever find her happy ever after?’ Thank God, I did and they could not be happier.”
Slipping into her third dress – “I
‘ It is crazy to think Mark set us up; he just knew we would be so well suited’
saw it online and fell madly in love with it; it was perfect for dancing” – by Australian design house Pallas Couture, Jess took to the dancefloor, first with her father and then with Will. “I danced with my dad – a father-and-daughter dance – to a song he absolutely grew up loving, Rhinestone Cowboy by Glen Campbell and then he handed me over to Will and we danced to Falling Like the Stars and then into a more uptempo song, Hungry Eyes from Dirty Dancing, as it is the song Will and I first ever danced to in my living room after a date.”
Before the afterparty at midnight, there was another
special moment – remembering those who could not be with them, including Will’s mum and Jess’s much-loved late uncle, Eddie. “We had balloons for everyone and I got on the mic and said: ‘For all of those people we have lost, we want to remember them tonight,’ and all the balloons were released, while an opera singer [Joe Terterian], who flew in from Dubai as a surprise for Will, sang Nessun Dorma.”
As the newlyweds returned to their home in Chigwell, Essex, Jess – who is soon heading off on tour in musical comedy Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, says she feels: “A wonderful sense of security. Will and I knew we had it anyway in our relationship but now I feel more secure than ever as my lover and my best friend is now legally my husband.
“Will is so incredibly close to his family, like I am to mine, and now I consider his family as my own. Despite all the odds after the past year, all those people we love came together for us. To give them a day like that meant the world to us.
“I couldn’t have done it without my sister Natalya by my side, she has been an absolute rock, my angel, or my glam team who make me feel my best, all my bridesmaids and all my family.
“When I look at the photos, I am smiling ear to ear in every one of them, and that reflected how I felt every minute of our day.”
‘ I now consider
Will’s family as my own’
‘ I will never give up on
a dream’ Jess