Andy Murray is finally marrying his long-time love Kim Sears this weekend. People have always sort of compared Murray’s relationship with Sears to Duchess Kate and Prince William, partly because the British papers love to compare any woman to Kate (for some reason) and partly because Andy and Kim have been together since they were teenagers (like Will and Kate). Kim and Andy met in 2005, when they were both 17 years old. A decade later, they’re finally marrying! I felt a little bit sorry for Murray because it felt sometimes like he was getting a lot public pressure to propose. But he finally did, and they’re going to have a big wedding in Scotland this weekend.
So, what’s controversial about that? Nothing really. Except Murray is making a big deal about how he’s not going to sell the wedding photos. Except that he and Kim gave Hello Magazine a really big exclusive cover interview ahead of their wedding. Which makes me wonder if Hello will get their wedding photos.
Tennis star Andy Murray has turned down a deal worth more than £1 million to sell his wedding photographs to glossy magazines. Titles such as OK! and Hello! reportedly offered seven-figure sums for exclusive shots of the tennis champion’s wedding to Kim Sears. However, the couple refused the offers and instead are choosing to have a private affair with close family and friends. They are to get married at Dunblane Cathedral on Saturday. A private reception at Murray’s £1.8 million hotel, Cromlix House, will follow the ceremony.
Invited guests are believed to include actor James Corden, television presenter Sue Barker and former tennis player Tim Henman. A source close to the couple reportedly said: “All the magazines you can think of made offers, but Andy and Kim are not interested. It doesn’t sit with the kind of people they are. It’s not about money – they do not want a glitzy wedding.”
Hello points out that Andy and Kim have revealed their complete wedding plans, which include a walk to greet wellwishers after the service. So maybe they won’t sell their wedding photos because they’re going to be giving them away for free, to anyone with a camera in Scotland.
As for the alleged “star-studded” invite list, apparently Murray hasn’t invited Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer. Harsh, right? I mean, I know Murray and Nole aren’t friends in real life, but I kind of assumed that Federer is pretty close to all of the major players on the men’s circuit?
What else? Let’s see… Murray says he let Kim plan the wedding how she wanted, that he wasn’t interested in having a say in flowers or anything. He did want a say with the food and the cake though. Kim apparently wanted a “natural” theme, with silver birches and lots of floral arrangements. Kim’s going to have four bridesmaids and he’ll have four groomsmen (or a best man and three groomsmen, whatever).
Photos courtesy of WENN.
What, no Dara Ó Briain? Frankie Boyle? Russell Howard? Mock the Week will be mightily amusing if they don’t get to go.
To be fair, Murray is actually friendly with Barker, Corden and Henman. He seems to have invited his Real Life friends.
Tragically Frankie Boyle is no longer a part of Mock the Week because otherwise it would be epic if they were to cover this.
I miss his dark, mildly sadistic sense of humour..
I thought he and Novak were friends actually, they have trained together since they were kids and seem to have maintained some sort of friendship throughout the yrs despite their court rivalry, And he has always been pretty chummy with Rafael too. R. Fed not so much. But maybe he wasn’t invited to their weddings either, they probably keep some distance during the season.
Found this article here, Novak saying that friendship does get put aside when it comes to the sport. http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/tennis/wimbledon-2013-novak-djokovic-puts-2033927 I’m a huge tennis fan and can’t help but wish they’d be able to be somewhat supportive of each other off the courts but I guess it’s every man for himself in the game until they retire at least. I guess it’s the way it goes.
I can only imagine how vanilla Kim’s bridal tastes are going to run. I do like them together and she’s a badass with her courtside manner, but fashion wise she is very K.Middy with her blowouts and generally conservative dress sense for her age. Andy is very good to his hometown and I imagine he will do a walk through the crowd. He is a real beacon of hope for Dunblane and I don’t think enough of made is just how strong a character he is to have gotten where he is after the school massacre he survived. He gets so much sh*t from the English press for not cow towing to England and it really irks me, even after winning Wimbledon he still has to fight his corner with the press.
Whats her courtside manner like? I feel kind of bad for her marrying this grouch but then I secretly wonder if she isnt a grumpy killjoy too. Maybe they bond over scowling at people to get off their lawn?
She’s usually supportive/well behaved but there was a big fuss about her dropping a few swear words at one of Murray’s competitors (more to herself, not in a Mrs. Federer totally psycho way), so the next match she turned up with a Parental Advisory t-shirt which was cute.
Murray’s court persona and taciturn Scottish manners get seriously misconstrued, he drops dry jokes all the time and I defy anyone to watch this and not say he has a huge heart. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJb_NvHlzEI
But Murray isn’t a grouch at all! He’s a Tom Hardyesque, gooey-over-animals, soppy type. He is quite happy to be sent up (see Comic Relief, Mock the Week, etc). He’s lovely to fellow tennis players and all other athletes and responds nicely to fans on his Twitter. He just has a dry sense of humour. I really don’t get why everyone thinks he is grumpy.
+1
He may be a joker off the court, but he’s a complete a** on it. He’s got a reputation as a grouch because he spends most of any match he’s losing screaming, grimacing, throwing things, etc.
“I really don’t get why everyone thinks he is grumpy.”
@ Sixer : Because his on court manner is mostly atrocious.
That’s true. He has not ever really had a handle on his emotions on the court, and it affects his game. I luff him, though.
Why do you assume Federer is close to most of the players? I admire his record, which is terrific, but have never liked him, finding him smug and far too pleased with himself. If he was chocolate, as they say, he would eat himself. Not surprised Andy hasn’t invited him or His other rivals, it’s a day for family and friends. And I agree with Mrs Darcy that Andy gets a hard time in the press. He’s a bit grumpy, but the media worship sports people who have achieved far less than Andy, and are far more unpleasant.
Glad to know I’m not the only one who feels this way about Federer.
Me three. Cannot stand Federer and his smug ways.
Murray? Rafa? I like.
I had to comment because of the headline. I don’t see how this is a big deal. I watch tennis but not enough to follow their personal lives closely. I don’t think they are friends. Sure friendly on the circuit, but I don’t recall them just hanging out in their free time.
I agree, they’re all professionals, they see enough of each on the circuit, they don’t have to socialize too, this is no surprise or scandal to anyone.
he is my least favorite top tennis player and I also find Kim extremely unpleasant.
Federer isn’t friends with many people on the mens circuit, and the few he is kinda close to are guys who worship him and lose to him consistently. I mean, he’s friendly, but he’s been very much in his own little bubble ever since he started winning. He and Djokovic are the opposite of close, he’s frosty with Murray and he’s kind of friendly with Nadal, but they’d never hang out unless it was for work. The only reason he has a slightly better relationship with Nadal is because Nadal’s too polite to call Federer out on his passive agressive insults.
Of the top 4 guys Rafa and Andy are the closest, but not so close that not being invited is any kind of snub.
Ha ha I’ll take any shade I can get against saint Roger, his smug passive aggression has driven me nuts for years!
Thanks Jessica! You pretty much said what I was coming here to say.
It’s certainly not a snub that the other men weren’t invited, least of all RF.
Congrats to Andy and Kim. Hope they have a fun day.
As a Tennis fan I agree with what you said Jessica, out of the 4 now, Rafa and Andy are the closest. Did you hear the Story of when Rafa was in NY ( I think during the US Open a couple of years ago ) went to a restaurant and saw that Andy was there and prank texted him pretending to be a woman In love with Andy? It was hilarious! They are close enough for those kind of things.
For some reason, I read that as “Rafa and Andy are in the closet” and thought… “Wait.. whaaaat??”
Why would he? Federer didn’t invite Murray or Djoker or Nadal to his wedding.
Djoker didn’t invite Murray , Nadal or Fed to his wedding. Why is this a thing??
Also, why compare Murray and Kim ‘ s relationship to the Royals? It’s perfectly asinine. A better comparison is to his fellow rivals.
Look at Fed, and Djoker and Nadal. All have been attached since 18/19 to the same woman. Federer met Mirka when he was 19. Djoker has been with Jelena since 18. Nadal has been with Xisca since 19. These are top world class tennis players who play 11 months out of the year. I imagine it’s easier just to keep one main piece when your schedule is packed with practice, matches and travel.
Actually, Kim broke up with Murray for about a year because she claimed he was too boring and all he wanted to do outside of tennis was play Xbox, lol.
Of the big 4, Nadal is still technically single. As far as I know he and Xisca aren’t even engaged. It’s curious that..given how family oriented Nadal is.
“Of the big 4, Nadal is still technically single. As far as I know he and Xisca aren’t even engaged. It’s curious that..given how family oriented Nadal is.”
A Sunday Times writer Camilla Long, did a pieces on Nadal, the year he had that epic final with Federer, and what she was alluding to was interesting.
You can guess it but I wondered then if it was common knowledge among certain members of the press.
And this was not same tabloid rag, this was The Sunday Times
We dont have that concept of engagement as you do. Its either boyfriends or married -or getting married-. He is far from being single.
@Jegede…..the same sort of rumour has been flying around about Federer, for years. Two sets of twins, very suspicious y’know! Ignoring the fact that Roger’s sister also had twins.
As for the Sunday Times not being a tabloid rag…..any newspaper owned by Murdoch will be just as tabloid as the “red-tops”. It just cloaks its insinuations in a more literate manner. Good on Rafa for not following anyone else’s timetable.
Rafa fans need to chill. I don’t care about his or anyone’s timetable or bio clock, I gave a poster a heads up on some info on a celeb story blog from a respected journo.
The Times is one of the few broadsheets here that attempts to be politically neutral.
Their pieces weigh pros and cons of both left and right on policy issues.- (unlike our other ideological driven braodsheets. Right – Telegraph newspaper / Left – Independent & Guardian newspaper)
I am Independent and love that.
I know Murdoch’s MO but he gets The Sun to do his bidding.
In the UK, The Times has a rep that could match the NY Times, and do not deal in salacious gossip for the heck of it.
Rafa has said on a Spanish Interview that he will not Marry his Girlfriend until he retires.
I know, right. They may be friends when they are on tour, but they don’t actually hang out. Each of them hang out with their own very big group of entourage. It’s weird to expect Murray to invite any of the big 4 when he’s not invited for Nole or Fed’s wedding, and doubtful that he’ll be invited for Rafa’s future wedding.
I can appreciate that they may have a perfect congenial relationship- but this is his-and hers- wedding. Maybe she didn’t want them there! If I were her, I’d want a break from all the pro athletes.
All of the big 4 are friendly but I wouldn’t say they are real life friends.
Federer is close with fellow Swiss Wawrinka Nadal is tight with Juan Monaco and David Ferrer.
Djoker is good with fellow Serbs Cilic and Tipsarevic.
It’s a myth that the top guys are all buddy buddy.
I don’t think there is anything harsh about it and I’d be surprised IF he’d invited anyone. They compete all year round not just at the majors and off time is spent training in their home countries.
Just to counter some of the Roger F ribbing, stories I’ve heard about him from people who’ve met him make him sound like an exceptionally nice guy.
One person I know who worked at the US Open said that out of all the players he’s met Roger was the one with least arrogance and most down to earth and he was actually kind of shocked by it.
There is a photo of Fed participating in Davis Cup. And he is in the bleachers with his fellow Swiss players and he is actually picking up trash and cleaning up the remnants of a pizza party don’t think a guy arrogant and full of himself bothers with that.
There is also the time Fed met a futbol player that he admires and apparently he fanboi’d the dude.
I’ve heard similar, that he’s quite unaffected in real life and that he’s also a fan favorite because he takes time for autographs, etc. I think he has somewhat of a smug “affect” that makes him come off smarmier than he really is.
I have heard the same from a friend of mine who worked with Federer and said he was so nice. I had the pleasure of having Nadal come to the place were I work and he was an absolute sweetheart too!
I would never call him a “saint” but I agree RF is a great guy who has a well deserved reputation. People who want to trash him are just jealous of his good fortune, talent and success. By all accounts, and there are many, he is a genuinely nice guy.
I’m a huge tennis fan too, but I’ve never really considered the thought that these guys should be supportive of each other in their personal lives. Your wedding day is a celebration shared with family and friends……unless it’s a royal wedding where diplomacy plays a part.
What’s really nice is when they help each other out with their charities and foundations. I’m thinking in particular of Fed and Rafa (and that hilarious YouTube video). But then, Federer is my longtime love and I find all of his activities endearing.
Don’t think it’s the English press per se that give Murray a hard time…..more the moronic members of the public who can’t forget his “I support anyone but England” joke around about the time of some international sporting event. They’ll never be convinced it WAS a joke.
Anyway, I’m not a fan but as an expat Scot who understands that looking dour does not preclude a sense of humour, I wish the pair of them all the best.
As for Federer being smug……it’s just that he doesn’t trot out the whole “false modesty” schtick. Me, I find that refreshing. And if you listen to some of his interviews, he’s a complete dork who laughs at some of the things he comes out with. Yep, I’m a fan!
Kim Sear’s hair remains life goals! Gorgeous
And that Hello! cover is not exclusive.
Andy and Kim have spoken to the mag in the past, but I have this issue and they’ve used mainly stock photos and cobbled together old interviews for this piece.
I like the headline. Let’s bring some bitchiness to the men’s circuit as well, since everyone already assumes that the women are in a constant cat fight.
Yeah, the men are not all buddy-buddy and everyone can accept that.
The women are not buddy-buddy either but it is read as typical feminine rivalry.
I have to disagree, I’m a 48 year old woman and women’s tennis is the sport of female empowerment. Name me another sport with dominant woman players, recognizable women sportscasters and women’s matches that get actual prime time air play. Women’s athletics is the red-headed step-child of television, let’s not take women’s tennis for granted. Plus, equal prize money, tennis may be an old sport and full of men but it’s made a lot of progress for women!
I dunno
The only real rivalry on the women’s side that is discussed is Serena and Sharapova. And that’s no rivalry. Sharapova hasn’t beaten Serena in 10 years.
Well…Azarenka is also in the mix. But it’s not like the mid 90s where it was Navratilova vs Graf then Graf vs Seles. Then in the 2000s it was the Williams sisters and Henin and Clijsters and Pierce and Capriati and Davenport and Mauresmo.
The early aughts was the golden age of women’s tennis.
Maybe my Andy bias is showing, but who cares? Maybe he didn’t want to think about work rivals on his wedding day.
Andy grumpy? Wha? I always found him really charming.
Sixer: ummm you’re joking. Have you seen Murray play?
The reason Murray is called grumpy is because he gets so negative on court. Swearing, yelling at himself, yelling at his box, negative body language (slumped shoulders, grabbing body parts like he is injured). When he mentally falls apart (which is often) he is miserable to watch. He is easily the most mentally fragile of the big 4.
This fragility was tempered when Lendl was coaching him. But it’s back in full force now.
The real question is whether “Morning Suit Tom” will be showing up to this shindig. I want to see brick shithouse Hiddles!
Well, somebody has to do the readings. He reads all the things at events where readings need to be read.
You read my mind, Mtnrunner….got a feeling resplendent Tom will be in attendance. I’ll be mixing a batch of PervyToms if you care to join.
You know it, pixie!
Wait, we’re supposed to believe they’re 27?? Really?
Murray is a whiny baby. It gives me great pleasure watching him break down on the court because he isn’t getting his way. His mother is a piece of work on Twitter, so he definitely comes by it naturally. Kim fits right in to that family.
He’s not friends with Nole, Feddy, or Rafe. He’s too busy trying to become them on court. That said…I wish him and Kim a lovely wedding and future.
Keeping it classy…
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/wimbledon/5605153/Wimbledon-2009-dandy-start-for-Roger-Federers-campaign.html
He looks like a hot Abraham Lincoln.