THERE is nothing better than an over-the-top celebrity wedding, and when golfer Rory McIlroy wed Erica Stoll in April 2017, it was up there with the best.
The five-day celebration cost around £250,000 and took place on a grand Irish estate with a fireworks display attended by Stevie Wonder, Coldplay’s Chris Martin, actor Jamie Dornan and One Direction’s Niall Horan.
Fast forward seven years to last month when Rory decided it was over.
He filed for divorce in a Florida court, saying he wanted shared custody of their three-year-old daughter Poppy and asked a judge to enforce a pre-nup the couple had signed before their giant bash.
The petition was served on American Erica at their £10million mansion nearby, citing that the marriage had become “irretrievably broken”.
But just a month later, pop those champagne corks — the marriage is all fixed. On Tuesday the divorce case was closed and for the couple it was back to happy families with their daughter.
Rory declared: “There have been rumours about my personal life recently, which is unfortunate.
“Responding to each rumour is a fool’s game.
“Over the past weeks, Erica and I have realised that our best future was as a family together. Thankfully, we have resolved our differences and look forward to a new beginning.”
Unfortunate? Best future? As a family? Resolving differences?
The utter gushing romance of it all, eh?
Not one single mention of how much he loves and adores his wife and wants to be with her.
Which makes you wonder if this reunion can ever truly work.
They’re not the first to try to give a relationship a go for a second time.
For some it has been a success. Justin Bieber and his now pregnant wife Hailey had a timely break, as did Orlando Bloom and Katy Perry.
But then there are those couples who have struggled.
Look at Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez or Kyle Walker and his wife Annie, who have now become as famous for their doomed relationship as they have for their day jobs.
If, like Rory and Erica, you split after a wedding it is not just a relationship that breaks down, but a marriage.
Filing for divorce and sorting out custody of your child is a life-changing event, so it is usually something you only do when you truly know in your heart it is over and the rot has firmly, tragically set in.
And a U-turn on that momentous decision within a few days seems unfathomable.
What does make sense, therefore, is the claims from sources that say the new joyous beginning for Mr and Mrs McIlroy has very little to do with Rory himself and a lot to do with the Northern Irish ace’s advisers.
Those sources say he is a “spur-of-the-moment” kind of man and tried to divorce in haste so they told him to “to give the marriage another six months” because the golfer can’t stand being on his own and needs stability.
If true, that makes Rory seem like an immature wet lettuce who needs a babysitter, not a wife.
The only thing that can truly make a marriage work for the first, second or even third time is love and respect on both sides. Not for the children, not to stay a Wag, not to become a Hollywood superforce, or simply because an adviser tells you it is the best way forward.
Those who are lured back to each other for all the wrong reasons will never succeed.
As I write this, Rory seems to be all smiles and is doing well at the US Open. But I am not sure that he and Mrs M will win at marriage.
I would put a sporting bet on the fact they are having to make some huge compromises in order to make this work right now.
And that one of them, sooner or later, will be contacting the Florida court and filing that paperwork all over again.
SOME may see this as child cruelty but I’ve always managed to avoid giving my five-year-old food from McDonald’s.
Up until last week he didn’t even know what it was.
But when I went to my friend’s wedding last Saturday, his babysitter kindly treated him to a Happy Meal – and he loved it.
He woke me up at 5.45am on Sunday, crawled into bed next to me and said: “Mummy, when I had my dinner last night it came with a toy. Can we go back there today please?”
As marketing ploys go, Maccy D’s has nailed it.
EMILY ATACK loves the old lads’ mag photoshoots of her in her pants.
She says: “I’m never going to look like that again – I looked amazing.“
She certainly did.
But I imagine she also had a stylist who helped choose those sexy outfits that helped her look so stunning.
Maybe Zara Tindall’s hubby, former rugby star Mike, should think about hiring one.
Mike, his one-time England teammate James Haskell and rugby commentator Alex Payne took to Sydney‘s Bondi Beach in budgie smugglers for a photoshoot to promote their podcast The Good, The Bad And The Rugby.
And their bulging biceps, six-packs and huge muscly thighs only emphasised how tiny their Speedos were, leaving very little to the imagination.
Emily says she has proudly put her pictures on the wall at home.
I imagine his royal guests must hope Mike doesn’t follow suit and do the same.
WHAT sweet justice that Alan Bates is being honoured with a knighthood just months after his ex-boss at the Post Office, Paula Vennells was stripped of her CBE.
In February it was announced that the King, on the advice of the Honours Forfeiture Committee, had stripped the former CEO, saying she had “brought the honours system into disrepute”.
It came after more than a million people signed a petition calling for Vennells to lose it.
Unsurprisingly the public had also called for Alan to get one after he became a national treasure following ITV drama Mr Bates Vs The Post Office, which shone a light on the Horizon IT scandal.
And now he has, in the King’s birthday honours.
I doubt any of us will be surprised to hear that Sir Alan has vowed to use it to help other victims.
What a wonderful man, and so well deserved.
SOCIAL media can be a dark, dangerous place.
But on Thursday a message from one lady on X/Twitter proved that it can be a truly wonderful platform for millions.
Before she passed away, Kate Rackham left a draft post in her account which read: “If you’re reading this, I’ve died.
“But do not cry for me. I have lived my life on my own terms, the way I have wanted to. I joined X as I needed an outlet. What I got was so much more.
“You made me feel validated in my feelings and much less alone. Thank you.”
The response from her followers was amazing. It isn’t surprising because the mum of two, whose account was named “Teacher with Cancer,” helped so many of them with her posts.
She had updated her followers with raw, heartfelt messages about her diagnosis and treatment, and how ill she felt.
She even discussed having to speak to her children about being diagnosed with incurable breast cancer at just 39 as well as her mental-health struggles.
Looking back at those posts, it is clear she not only used this platform to help herself but to help others too.
Today, on Father’s Day, it will undoubtedly be horrific for both her husband Mark and little girls Ruby and Nancy.
But thanks to the power of social media they will be able to look back and always remember just how brave and amazing this woman was. I hope she rests in peace.
