Kian's sick dad stays home as singer weds Jodi in Barbados

By Conor Feehan

Kian Egan's dream wedding to Jodi Albert was tinged with sadness when his cancer-stricken father was too sick to travel to Barbados to see the couple marry.

Kevin Egan, who is receiving treatment for his illness here in Ireland, urged his son to go ahead with the €1m showbiz wedding without him.

"Kian's dad has been battling cancer for some time, and the doctors advised him not to fly that sort of distance to that sort of heat," said one source.

"But he wouldn't have wanted anything to stop them having their big day," the source added.

Showbiz

The couple tied the knot in sun-kissed Barbados at midday yesterday in one of the most highly anticipated showbiz weddings of the year.

Westlife star Kian (29) and actress-turned-singer Jodi (25) got engaged on Christmas Day 2007 after being together for four years.

The pair decided on the Caribbean location for their wedding after being on holidays there last year.

Despite dad Kevin's absence, Kian was surrounded by his other family members, including his mother Patricia, brothers Tom, Gavin and Colm, and sisters Marielle, Vivienne and Fenella.

A gospel choir serenaded Kian and Jodi with the song Love Is In The Air as they took their wedding vows on Turtle Beach on the paradise island of Barbados.

The couple were dressed all in white as were most of the guests attending the bash at the Grand House Hotel.

Official photographers from OK! magazine covered the big event.

After the ceremony a Caribbean steel band played as guests sipped champagne and congratulated the couple before heading off for the reception in a nearby mansion, which X Factor boss Simon Cowell usually rents out when he holidays in Barbados.

Ceremony

Cowell couldn't make yesterday's ceremony as he was busy working in America.

And many were glad to be dressed in white as the afternoon sun blazed down on them, sending temperatures soaring.

Two of the exceptions to the all-white look were pop manager Louis Walsh, who wore black trousers, and Denis Demond of MCD, who had a blue shirt.

The night before the wedding all the guests met up for a lengthy dinner at the Cliff Restaurant, which has panoramic views out over the blue ocean.

And the celebrations will continue again today with Kian and Jodi hosting a special barbecue on the beach for all their lucky guests.

hnews@herald.ie

- Conor Feehan

Source: www.herald.ie
Credit:Westlife.gr