All the celebrities who have sworn off marriage
Marriage can be a wonderful thing - but it isn’t for everybody, and some celebrities have had enough of it.
Strictly Come Dancing judge Shirley Ballas has declared that she never wants to marry again, even though she is in a long-term relationship with Danny Taylor.
The 63-year-old opened up about her love life in a recent appearance on Alan Carr’s Life’s A Beach podcast, and reflected on her previous relationships.
She was married twice, first to former ballroom dancer Sammy Stopford from 1980 to 1984, and then to Corky Ballas in 1985 to 2007.
Ballas has been in a relationship with Taylor since 2019, after they met while working on a pantomime production of Jack and the Beanstalk.
Speaking on Carr’s podcast, the former professional dancer said: “Two marriages, an engagement, two long-term relationships later, and I will not be getting married again. I’ve made a decision.”
She also shared some of her mother’s relationship advice, adding: “My mum says [relationships are] like buses. You get on, you get off another, it’s fine.”
Ballas joins a slew of other celebrities who have sworn off marriage, after a few goes at it. These are all the famous faces who have decided marriage just isn’t for them.
Linda Evangelista
The former supermodel, who has been married once before, famously told the Sunday Times last year that she is “not interested” in dating, let alone another crack at marriage.
Evangelista was previously married to French former model Gerard Marie from 1987 to 1993. She later became engaged to actor Kyle MacLachlan, which was called off, and then got into a relationship with billionaire businessman Francois-Henri Pinault. She shares a 17-year-old son with Pinault.
She told the publication: “Not interested. I don’t want to sleep with anybody any more. I don’t want to hear somebody breathing.”
Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg has been married three times in the past. She was married to Alvin Martin from 1973 to 1979, then to David Claessen from 1986 to 1988. Her last marriage was to Lyle Trachtenberg, from 1994 to 1995.
In an iconic response to a question about whether she would ever get married again, Goldberg told The New York Times in 2016: “No, I think I’m not that interested. I’m much happier on my own.
“I can spend as much time with somebody as I want to spend, but I’m not looking to be with somebody forever or live with someone. I don’t want somebody in my house.
“I’m the round peg, and marriage is the square hole. You can’t have a square hole, can you?”
Diane Kruger
The National Treasure star, 47, has been married once previously. She was wed to Guillaume Canet from 2001 to 2006. Following the end of her marriage, she dated Joshua Jackson for a decade until 2016, when she met and began dating Norman Reedus, with whom she shares a daughter.
She told Glamour in 2012: “Without sounding pessimistic, I learned that I don’t believe in marriage. I believe in a commitment that you make in your heart. There’s no paper that will make you stay.”
Jane Fonda
A three-time marriage veteran, Jane Fonda has decided that wedded bliss simply isn’t on the cards for her.
The Grace and Frankie star, 86, was married to Roger Vadim from 1965 to 1973, Tom Hayden from 1973 to 1990, and Ted Turner from 1991 to 2001.
In an interview with Page Six in 2021, Fonda reflected on her marriages and said: “I'll tell you something that I haven't achieved, which is a successful marriage. But the second part of your question is, 'Do you want to?' I don't want to.
"See, I live by myself,” the star continued. “I don't have any guy who doesn't want a woman who is willing to be angry, and who doesn't want a woman who is willing to be angry and stand up.
"I'm not threatening anybody. I can watch whatever I want on TV. So I don't ever want to be married again. But it's something I wish I'd been better at.”
Shakira
The Hips Don’t Lie singer was at the centre of a messy split from Spanish footballer Gerard Pique in 2022, after 11 years together. She shares two sons with Pique, but they were never married.
In 2020, she opened up about why the couple were foregoing marriage. In an interview on 60 Minutes, she said: “To tell you the truth, marriage scares the shit out of me. I don’t want him to see me as the wife. I’d rather him see me as his girlfriend.”
Drew Barrymore
After three marriages, actor and talk show host Drew Barrymore has sworn she will “never, never, never” get married again.
The Drew Barrymore Show host was married to Jeremy Thomas from 1994 to 1995, and later to Tom Green from 2001 to 2002. Her longest marriage was to Will Kopelman, from 2012 to 2016.
She told People in 2020 that, while she is a “hopeless romantic”, marriage is no longer something she wants for herself.
“Never. Never, never, never. I will never get married again!” she declared. “And I also believe people should not say the word 'never,' and I will never, with a capital N-E-V-E-R, never get married.
“It’s like I have two options: Cut it - this has not worked - or be Elizabeth Taylor [who married eight times to seven men]. And I have too many more to go. I never want to be entwined with someone like that again ever.
“You break up, and you move on. You get divorced, and it’s just so different. I love that we are trying to hold on to an institution that [started] when the closest person to you for companionship was a three-day horse ride away and your life span was 30 years."
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