GAZ BEADLE & EMMA MCVEY
REALITY STAR GARY BEADLE MARRIES EMMA MCVEY IN A STUNNING CEREMONY WITH THEIR CHILDREN BY THEIR SIDE – JUST WEEKS BEFORE EMMA HAS A LIFE-CHANGING OPERATION
For former Geordie Shore star Gary Beadle and his partner of five years, Emma Mcvey, getting married without their two children by their side was never an option. But when their little ones, Chester, three, and 18-month-old Primrose, were due to walk down the aisle ahead of their mum at the stunning Merrydale Manor in Cheshire, it all became a little too much.
“We had to be Mum and Dad, first and foremost,” explains Gary, when we catch up with him and Emma shortly after their beautiful ceremony, which took place on Friday 9 July, in front of 90 guests. “Being around so many people tipped them over the edge a bit – so we held them as we said our vows. I would’ve bet my mortgage that would happen!”
But the blip didn’t distract from the gorgeous day, which Emma, 28, blissfully describes as “amazing”.
‘we had to be mum and dad, first and foremost’
Having cancelled their plans once already thanks to the pandemic, the pair were initially worried they wouldn’t be able to get hitched this year, but a stroke of luck meant they could become man and wife.
“We were lucky to get the venue – someone cancelled on the same day we went to look at it, so we snapped it up there and then,” explains Gary, 32. “Everything else was booked up, so we know how lucky we were.”
And their good fortune continued on the big day, in which Emma – who didn’t even have her hair or make-up sorted until the morning of the wedding – wore two stunning dresses.
With her childhood best friend and “man of honour” Joe heading up her bridal party, which also included her sisters Hayley and Elisha, and three
childhood friends, Emma was a vision. She didn’t stop beaming throughout the ceremony and the reception, which included moving speeches from Gary, her dad Carl, and Gary’s best man, school friend Ross. But the icing on the cake was a surprise appearance from TOWIE star James “Arg” Argent, who serenaded guests with a repertoire of cover songs, arranged by Emma as a treat for Gary.
Just a few weeks before the wedding, Emma found out she had three holes in her heart and would need open heart surgery. She readily admits the nuptials were a welcome distraction from the worry – and not even the thought of the operation could take away from the magic of the day.
Here, the newlyweds talks us through their favourite moments, explain why their little ones were a priority, and reveal what lies ahead when Emma undergoes surgery in a few weeks...
Congrats guys – the wedding was beautiful!
Emma: Thank you! It went so well. We had an amazing day.
And to pull a wedding together in the Covid era is a quite a feat...
Gary: Well, the hardest thing was the fact that it was rushed. We waited to know it was definitely safe to go ahead with it, then we told everyone. Emma: Until the announcement was made I hadn’t planned a thing. Honestly, two weeks before the wedding it was a mad rush – I had no hair or make-up sorted at all! I didn’t have my hair sorted until the day! I convinced myself it wouldn’t go ahead. Luckily I have two hairdresser friends who came through on the morning of the wedding and we just went with it.
You sound unbelievably chilled for a bride on her wedding day, Emma!
Emma: My sister said she was actually worried about how chilled I was! I was the last of the group to get my make-up and hair done, and even then I had the kids on my knee. I wasn’t a bridezilla, put it that way. I don’t think I had time to take it all in really, I had to be a mum above everything else.
How did the kids deal with the excitement?
Emma: Although I was super chilled all morning, the whole event was a bit overwhelming for Chester and Primrose. They’ve not been in an
environment with so many adults before, especially with lockdown and everything. They were supposed to walk down the aisle with my man of honour, Joe, but they were struggling with it, so in the end Prim was carried by my dad, who gave her to Gary, and I carried Chester, who was a little upset, up the aisle.
So you said your vows holding the kids?
Gary: Yeah, we had to. Remember, because of the last 18 months, they’ve only ever known our house and their nurseries, so it’s not normal for them. Emma: There were a lot of tears from Chester.
Gary: And we’re not the sort of people who would leave them with others if they’re crying. If they want us for comfort, we’ll be there no matter what. Even if we are in the middle of getting married!
Did that not distract from your big moment walking down the aisle, Emma?
Emma: Not at all, I was just worried that Chester was upset.
Gary: Lockdown has meant he’s missed out on so much – swimming lessons, baby groups, and that age is so key when it comes to development, so it has affected him. So for him to be put in a room with 90 adults, it was scary for him.
Emma: It broke my heart. He has a lot of separation anxiety and every time there was some cheering he’d get frightened and cry. It was really hard.
What about you, Gary? Did it take away from seeing Emma in her wedding dress for the first time?
Emma [to Gary]: I think you’d think it was weird if I wasn’t holding a child. You’re so used to it!
Gary: Look, I always knew Emma
would look amazing. I always thought I’d cry when I first saw her walking down the aisle – and I would’ve if she’d been on her own – but actually I kept wondering if Chester was OK! And then I realised I’d have to go get Prim from her grandad. So I took her and she promptly ripped the flower off my suit!
Emma: Ha ha, and she kept trying to stand on my veil later!
Gary: It’s all good though, we always wanted our kids at the wedding. We’d never be ones to leave them with relatives or a babysitter, we wanted them there no matter what. I would’ve bet my mortgage that we’d end up holding them during the ceremony. And to be honest, seeing Emma walk up the aisle holding our son – it just made me love her even more.
You kept the guest list quite small. Was that because of Covid?
Gary: We wanted it to be just the people who have really been there for us over the last couple of years. When you start inviting people you went to school with, or people you went on a night out with five years ago, the numbers start getting daft. Ninety was a nice number.
Emma: We are very close to every single person there. We always said we wanted a smaller wedding. We didn’t feel the need to invite every acquaintance we’d ever spoken to.
So was the lack of celebrity guests a deliberate move on your part?
Emma: It wasn’t deliberate, but the people who were there for us when we needed them – they were the ones who we invited.
Gary: If we’d have got married four or five years ago, it would have been mental. Our lives are different now but back then we used to see a lot of celebs out and about at events and stuff. But I’m not gonna invite a famous person to my wedding just because they commented on an Instagram post or something. I don’t care about having a “celebrity guest list”.