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Their wedding was ‘the best day of their lives’, celebrated with family and celebrity friends at their £1.2million home.
But there was one thing that Stacey Solomon and Joe Swash’s wedding was not… legally binding.
The couple tied the knot at their Essex home, Pickle Cottage, back in July 2022 but it has now been revealed that they never made the marriage official.
At the time, Stacey, 36, said they were planning to register their marriage after the wedding as their home didn’t have a civil ceremony licence.
But three and a half years on, TV’s golden couple have still not made their union official.
The bombshell comes just two weeks after the television personality was quizzed about her relationship with Joe, 44, having been spotted without her wedding ring.
A source told The Sun: ‘They always intended to do the legal part, but with six kids and busy diaries just haven’t got round to it, life has got in the way.
‘Stacey and Joe obviously knew that their garden wedding wasn’t legal and were upfront about that.’
The news might come as a surprise to fans, who watched the couple on their BBC reality show, Stacey & Joe.
It followed their lives with their children; Rex, six, Rose, four, and Belle, three. Stacey is also mum to Zachary, 18, and Leighton, 13, from previous relationships, while Joe has another son, Harry, who he had with an ex-partner in 2007.
Stacey also has lucrative family fashion ranges with Asda and Primark.
An insider said: ‘It will certainly raise eyebrows with firms and even TV execs that they’ve invested in a perfect picture that’s all a sham.’
The couple first met in 2010 on the set of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! but didn’t start dating until 2016, moving in together two years later.
Joe got down on one knee in 2020 on Christmas Eve during a romantic walk, and the pair moved into Pickle Cottage a year later.
After the wedding, Stacey spoke about the status of their union at the time. She said: ‘To get married anywhere legally, the place has to have a civil ceremony licence.
‘One of the requirements for this licence is that the premises must be made readily available for ceremonies.
Would you skip the legal side of marriage – or make it official?
‘As this is our private family home and we need it to remain that way we couldn’t go for that option.
‘So we are having a relaxed private blessing in front of our closest friends and family and a ceremony of our love to each other.
‘We will register our marriage legally after.’
The garden ceremony featured a romantic performance from Towie star James Argent’s The Arg Band while Mrs Hinch acted as bridesmaid.
Fellow Loose Woman Linda Robson and ex-Towie star Ricky Rayment were part of the wedding party.
A source close to the couple told the Daily Mail at the time: ‘Stacey and Joe had the best day of their lives.
‘It was exactly everything they had hoped for, the weather was glorious, and they had a joyous day with their children and family.
‘It was also important to Stacey for her day to uphold her strong Jewish values, as well as be a modern and fun day for everyone.
‘They had always wanted their wedding to be just for them, at their home, and keeping their celebrations intimate did not disappoint.’
Two weeks ago Stacey appeared on This Morning, where she set the record straight about her ‘marriage’ with Joe after sparking speculation by removing her wedding ring.
Host Ben Shephard said: ‘There are these crazy rumours going on about the two of you at the moment… What’s going on there, Stace?’
Stacey replied: ‘What are they? Go on. There’s a new rumour each week!’
Ben explained: ‘You’ve not been wearing your ring. There might be some issues going on?’
‘Do you know what, I am terrible. I don’t read any of that stuff.
‘In fact, does anyone anymore?’ Stacey asked.
‘But yeah, we just… Have I not been wearing my ring? Probably took it off to go to the toilet, or something.’
Referring to Joe’s plans to have a fishing lake near Pickle Cottage, Ben went on to say: ‘There is a lot going on at the moment, because of his lake, the plan for the lake is coming to fruition.
‘He was talking to us the other day…’
Stacey joked: ‘Maybe I dropped my ring in the lake… with our marriage!’
The first time fans began to speculate that the couple could be on the rocks came when they were seen arguing on the most recent series of their show Stacey & Joe.
The pair clashed as dad Joe unexplainably ‘disappeared’ for the day in one episode, and Stacey also hung up on her husband after he branded her ‘out of order’ and slammed her for ‘overreacting’ in a heated parenting row.
But the two admitted that they didn’t want to cut the argument in the way other couples would be tempted to.
Joe previously said: ‘So many people represent their lives as being so perfect on Instagram. It’s our responsibility to show the real – the highs and the lows.
‘It’s not all a bed of roses. Sometimes we argue.’
While Stacey added: ‘What you see is what you get. What we’ve learnt about each other is that we’re not a perfect couple.
‘We’ve never said we’re a perfect couple, but you get to watch yourself back, which is something that doesn’t happen often.’
The news about Stacey and Joe’s ‘marriage’ comes after it was revealed her Loose Women co-star Olivia Attwood also never made her marriage to footballer Bradley Dack legally binding.
The Daily Mail has contacted Stacey’s representative for comment.
