Spandau Ballet star Martin Kemp and Wham! backing singer Shirlie married in 1988, but admit being famous was a wildly different experience to what it is for modern popstars
Martin Kemp’s wife Shirlie says “we survived it” as she opened up about their relationship. The Spandau Ballet bassist has been married to Wham! backing singer Shirlie since 1988.
Martin says he originally saw Shirlie while watching Wham! perform on Top of The Pops. A few weeks later the former EastEnders star says he ran into Shirlie at a theatre show, giving her his number at an after party.
During his time on I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! Martin explained that Shirlie “never called him”. However her bandmate George Michael eventually decided to pick up the phone, leading to Martin finally bagging a date with Shirlie.
The pair have been together ever since, sharing son Roman and daughter Harleymoon. They however revealed that being a popstar in the 1990s was wildly different to the modern world.
Discussing the early days of their relationship on the Mid-point podcast, Shirlie, 63, said: “We would always go in and out of the back of clubs or restaurants because you didn’t want to be photographed then. Then, all of a sudden, people were paying photographers to come and photograph them.
“It was a very different time for us. Why we survived it? I think we were just at the right place at the right time. That was our era and we understood it. Love is also a very grounding thing.”
Martin went on to say that celebrities “give everything” now whereas the 1980s still had an element of myth. Spandau were known for attracting huge crowds of adoring fans throughout their career.
Comparing his own popularity to modern popstars, Martin, 64, said: “The difference now is that being a popstar back in the day was all about myth and legend. You’d look at the poster and that’s all you got, so everything else about this popstar happened in your head.
“What he was doing at home, was it a palace, you know, who is this person, but nowadays they give everything. You know what Robbie looks like when he’s at home in his underwear, they give you everything.”
Elsewhere, Martin recently revealed he had to be rescued by firefighters after finding himself stranded in a lift before a DJ set in Falkirk. In an Instagram post, he explained he was trapped for an hour before he was rescued.
Thankfully, he appeared to see the funny side and posted a picture with the fire service on his social media. The crew were all seen cheering and giving the thumbs up after the successful evacuation.
Alongside his post, Martin wrote: “Stuck in a lift for an hour!! Before tonight’s gig at City Falkirk… but I still had fun. Thank you so much Falkirk Fire Brigade for rescuing all of us!!!!”
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