Petra Ecclestone was a blushing bride over the weekend – but necessarily for all the right reasons.
The billionaire Formula 1 heiress tied the knot with beau Sam Palmer in London. Sadly, the marriage came just days after Father Bernie caused a national scandal when he was charged with fraud. (Prosecutors say the racing mogul tried to pull so fast).
A party is reported to have taken place at Sloane House, Eccelstone’s $203 million 18th-century mansion in the Chelsea neighborhood. A three-course meal was served between hanging white flower arrangements on gold plates.
Indie rock band Razorlight performed and there was also a string quartet. Petra’s sister, Tamara Ecclestone, made a toast.
Palmer posted a photo of a gift from his new wife on Instagram, West Ham’s winning FA Cup in 1980, saying: “It has to go down in history as the greatest wedding gift of all time.”
Ecclestone and Palmer have been dating since 2018 and have one child together. She has three children with her ex-husband, James Stunt.
Ecclestone and Stunt had a messy split in 2017. He has been charged with money laundering but denies the charges.
According to The Sun, she stepped up security because she was afraid that Stunt would do something to ruin the affair. “Petra says she wouldn’t let James pass by to try and get the shine off her big day, so she’s done everything she can to make sure nothing can go wrong,” a source told the newspaper.
It was revealed last week that Ecclestone’s father, F1 honcho Bernie, has been charged with fraud by false representation of more than $477 million in alleged undeclared foreign assets. Bernie, who was part of F1 for nearly 60 years, is worth an estimated $3 billion, according to Forbes.