Standing side-by-side after being declared husband and wife, Sam Vanderpump and Alice Yaxley are the epitome of married bliss. The newlyweds, both stars of the Channel 4 show Made in Chelsea, were married at an intimate ceremony in front of 30 guests at the Kensington and Chelsea Register Office last week, sharing their exquisite photo album exclusively with HELLO!.
"Our wedding was amazing, it was even better than either of us could have imagined," model Alice, 24, who is seven months pregnant with the couple's first child, tells us. "It was perfect, with all the people that I love. I felt the happiest I've ever felt."
© Sophie CranstonSam, 28, adds: "Everything went off without a hitch. The whole wedding was fantastic and it was the perfect start to our marriage. I'm extremely happy and haven't stopped smiling."
The occasion was even more joyful considering where the couple were at this time last year. Sam, who runs a currency business, was dangerously ill and hospitalised after contracting flu, which in turn brought on liver and kidney failure and sepsis. More recently, he has been given a diagnosis of irreversible end-stage liver disease, with his life expectancy estimated to be four to five years without a transplant, for which he is now on a waiting list.
"I was struggling emotionally over the last few weeks with everything going on with my liver transplant... But I have been so over-the-moon happy for the past few days"
"I was struggling emotionally over the last few weeks with everything going on with my liver transplant and I was worried that was going to dampen my spirits for the wedding," Sam says. "But I have been so over-the-moon happy for the past few days."
Intimate celebration
The couple plan on throwing a much bigger celebration for their family and friends in future, potentially in May 2027. They wanted to tie the knot last week while Sam's health was good and before the birth of their baby – a boy they plan to call Duke, short for Marmaduke, a favourite name of Sam's late father – who is due on Valentine's Day.
© Sophie CranstonThey planned their intimate wedding, which included a small reception at the luxury London hotel The Lanesborough, in only four weeks. "We all want to have the same last name before Duke comes," Sam explains. "Fingers crossed I get a liver transplant quickly, but we don’t know when that's going to be and we didn’t want to wait to get married."
The couple went against tradition in some respects, choosing Alice's elegant Caroline Castigliano wedding dress together and deciding against a first dance and long speeches at the dinner reception, preferring to leave all that until their bigger wedding.
Yet none of that took away from the beauty and emotion of the big day, which began with Alice waking up in the Chelsea apartment she shares with Sam, while the groom-to-be spent time with his family, including his mother Simone Beasant, in Essex.
Meanwhile, Art Narasit Nuadolo, the floral designer and stylist of Art Flower Design UK, was decorating the register office with blooms in keeping with the red colour scheme, as family and friends, including the couple’s Made in Chelsea co-stars Ollie and Gareth Locke, gathered.
Sam’s brother Jack and his close friend Luke Loukaides were joint best men, while Sasha Sommers, Tomas Buckland, Kyle Rothery, Ravi Karimi and Ed Kelly made up the rest of the groomsmen. Alice had three attendants, her co-maids of honour Charlotte Brown, Chloe Saunders and Talitha Balinska.
© Sophie CranstonThe bride, her hair fashioned in a chic twist by the stylist Katie McGoldrick, arrived for the 3 pm ceremony in the beautiful white silk and lace dress she had found only days before the ceremony.
"As soon as I tried it on, I knew it was right because Sam’s reaction was so different to the others," Alice says of finding the gown, made from pure silk satin and hand-appliqued French lace, which she paired with Dior heels.
Carrying a bouquet of lilies, she walked down the aisle on the arm of her father, Jason. Her nerves disappeared as soon as she saw her groom: "I felt really emotional and it was quite overwhelming, but then I saw Sam smiling. He had this massive grin like a Cheshire cat and it completely relaxed me."
Not that Sam, who wore a white jacket and black trousers from Endrick Clothing, was at ease himself. "I was very nervous and very emotional," he recalls. "Surprisingly enough, I didn’t cry, but Alice looked stunning."
One very special guest was making his presence known, too – the couple's unborn son. "When we first sat down before the ceremony, he started kicking," Alice says.
© Sophie CranstonPersonal touches
The couple recited traditional vows and exchanged wedding rings. Alice's was a gold and diamond band by Hirsh London, while Sam wore his late father Mark's wedding ring, which had been refreshed and shined. Sam also wore cufflinks that once belonged to Mark, who died in 2018 at the age of 59.
The new Mr and Mrs Vanderpump then shared their first kiss before descending the register office’s famous steps while being showered with confetti by their friends and family.
Everyone headed off to The Lanesborough for an elegant dinner celebration, which began with drinks, including non-alcoholic options for the bride and groom – Sam is teetotal owing to his health condition, and Alice is not drinking while pregnant. Inside, Eleanor Hudson, the wedding singer, performed songs including the couple's favourite 'Die with a Smile' by Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga.
The couple were formally introduced as Mr and Mrs Vanderpump as they made their way to dinner with their guests, who were presented with a menu that included a terrine of smoked pork and guinea fowl and smoked salmon with quails’ egg for starters, main courses of beef wellington, wild seabass and roasted delica pumpkin risotto and a choice of Christmas pudding, apple crumble and cookie and milk chocolate pudding for dessert.
After short, impromptu speeches by Sam and Alice's father, the meal ended with the cutting of the red, two-tiered, heart-shaped wedding cake, made by Alice’s mother Claire. "My mum had practised about five times, so seeing her pour her heart into doing it was very special," Alice says.
© Sophie CranstonWith only 30 guests on the invite list, how did they decide who to include? Sam says it was: "Just family, the groomsmen and bridesmaids, plus Ollie and Gareth Locke, because they’ve played such a vital role with my health and the pregnancy and have been extremely supportive."
One important guest who was unable to come was Sam's aunt Lisa Vanderpump, who dialled in via video. The couple are close to the former star of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, who is the sister of Sam's late father. "She’s been a great support for me since my dad passed away and that relationship has only got stronger, to the point where we speak nearly every day," he says of his aunt.
"It's an indescribable feeling, In a weird way, it feels like we’ve already been married for 80 years and I feel so secure"
Health update
Sam says his health today is "fine". He was born with congenital hepatic fibrosis of the liver and polycystic kidney disease, rare conditions that had been dormant until he caught flu in December.
"You wouldn't even notice I needed a liver transplant, but the doctors say my liver's only got a couple of years left and they predict I could get very ill. But before that happens they want me to have a transplant. There are good days and bad days and it’s hard. But we are very positive, we are processing our emotions and speaking to the right people.
"We've got a good support network around us and we have each other. The good thing is I live my life absolutely normally and, fingers crossed, it will stay normal until I have a transplant."
© Sophie CranstonIn the meantime, the couple are getting their new three-bedroom Chelsea apartment ready for the arrival of their son. The baby is due to be born at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and Alice would like a water birth. "I’m very excited to be a dad," Sam says. "I can’t wait. It’s a whole journey I'm so excited for."
Both admit that they have faced a "rollercoaster year". Sam and Alice began dating in July 2024 and got engaged eight months later, having weathered Sam’s battle with sepsis in between. Through it all, though, they have had each other.
"I’ve always had a sense of security from day dot with Alice," Sam says of his new wife. "She always made me feel so secure and comfortable and so happy. I hope I’ve always done the same for her." "It’s an indescribable feeling," Alice says. "In a weird way, it feels like we’ve already been married for 80 years and I feel so secure."
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