Spandau Ballet star Martin Kemp has revealed the emotional secret behind his nearly four-decade marriage to wife Shirlie Holliman during an intimate conversation on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
The Foundation of Friendship
Speaking candidly in the Bush Telegraph on Sunday night, November 23, the 64-year-old musician described his wife as his everything. "Shirlie is everything for me, everything I do in my life, I do it for her," he emotionally shared with viewers.
The actor and musician explained to his campmates that friendship has been the cornerstone of their relationship, which has remained strong since they married in 1988. He went on to describe their understated wedding ceremony in St Lucia, joking about its simplicity.
"I got married in St Lucia on a clifftop overlooking the Caribbean with just three people," Martin revealed. He added with humour, "If you looked into it more you'd find we're not married!"
A Romantic Beginning with George Michael
The couple's love story began in the 1980s when Martin first spotted Shirlie performing as one half of Wham!'s iconic backing duo, Pepsi & Shirlie. Recalling their first meeting in a previous interview, Martin said he couldn't take his eyes off Shirlie during a Top of the Pops performance.
"I'd seen Wham! on Top Of The Pops singing 'Young Guns', and I couldn't take my eyes off Shirlie," he remembered. "I thought she was the most beautiful woman I'd seen."
Shirlie initially hesitated to call the Spandau Ballet star, admitting she was intimidated by his pop star status. "It wasn't because I didn't want to call. He was this big pop star and I was scared he would be a proper pop star," she explained.
The romance finally began thanks to intervention from George Michael, who was a big Spandau Ballet fan. Shirlie revealed that Michael took matters into his own hands while she was at his house. "He kept saying, 'Are you going to call him?' He called the number and gave me the phone," she recalled.
Family Milestones and Funny Moments
Martin shared a particularly touching revelation about their wedding night, explaining that the couple had been trying unsuccessfully to conceive due to Shirlie's endometriosis. "Then on the night we got married – kaboom!" he laughed, prompting cheers from his fellow campmates.
The couple welcomed their daughter Harley Moon in 1989, followed by son Roman in 1993. Martin also entertained his campmates with a hilarious story about Shirlie's mother, who once unexpectedly asked them, "Now have you tried the wheelbarrow?" leaving the group in fits of laughter.
Their first date involved an unusual third wheel – George Michael himself. Martin explained how he spotted Shirlie standing on Camden High Street with the Wham! star in tow. "We spent the evening trying to lose him," Martin admitted, while Shirlie recalled that even George wasn't thrilled about being their chaperone, complaining, "I didn't know you'd be snogging all night."
The musician also surprised viewers by revealing he once auditioned for James Bond, meeting with producer Barbara Broccoli before the role went to Pierce Brosnan. Fellow campmate Kelly Brook later commented that he would have made a great Bond with his "beautiful blue eyes" and charisma.
