LA: Tamara Ecclestone makes a booty-ful bride as hubby Jay Rutland hauls her from the sea at their £15million wedding celebration.The foxy F1 heiress, 28 — daughter of billionaire Bernie — partied in a white bikini under a sheer dress.
This was the white wedding to end all white weddings, with even the guests being asked to become matching accessories to the bride.But that dress code was about as modest as Tamara Ecclestone’s raunchy, bacchanalian wedding feast was to be,the Daily Mail reported.
But then with a £2.5 billion fortune, courtesy of her Formula 1 supremo father Bernie, her marriage to disgraced City stockbroker Jay Rutland was always going to be a little less than discreet.
That, of course, is not her style. Tamara subscribes to the ‘if you’ve got it, flaunt it’ philosophy, and she decided to mark the occasion with all the flamboyance money can buy.
The trouble is, of course, that you can’t buy taste.Yesterday, the famous Grand-Hotel du Cap-Ferrat, once a byword for Hollywood glamour, was surrendering to Tamara’s new-money crowd.From the bridegroom pulling on a large cigar to the muscled, tattooed guests and superannuated models, it was excess all areas.
The pictures barely do justice to the extraordinary scenes of yesterday’s beach party, which followed the sumptuous wedding of the previous night.
It-girl Caroline Stanbury, a former fancy of Prince Andrew, who was among the guests, tweeted: ‘Still partying, Essex style.’
There was plenty of laughter, of course, but perhaps the biggest smile came when the groom, who appeared to be wearing a platinum band on his finger to match Tamara’s wedding ring, declared of his new wife: ‘I admire her enormously. She does not show her wealth . . . Money is not important. It’s not what attracted me to her.’
Yet from the moment the two had touched down in the South of France, where one Rolls-Royce was waiting to whisk them away, and another to take their luggage, money was at the heart of the celebration.
On Tuesday, Tamara, 28, was sheathed in a couture Vera Wang gown complete with 30 ft train and crystals on the bodice.
And she took her first dance as Mrs Rutland to a cover of Lionel Richie’s Endless Love, performed live by Mariah Carey - hired for £2.5 million. Miss Carey also sang her new single Beautiful.
Sir Elton John also played an hour-long set on Monday night, dedicating his song Circle Of Life, from the soundtrack to Disney film The Lion King, to the happy couple. It is thought the singer was paid £1 million to attend.
Some guests claimed that Tamara had been irritated over absent guests of honour Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie and their mother, Sarah, Duchess of York - who failed to turn up.
A source said: ‘Tamara was livid that Fergie and her girls did not attend. For her fairytale wedding she wanted royalty to attend.’But yesterday the bride was on the beach and turning up the volume.
Although it was undeniably lavish, exceeding its £5 million budget (the hotel rooms alone cost £600,000 and some observers put the total cost at around £7 million), some complained the three-day event failed to live up to expectations.
Some suggested that Mr Rutland’s guests behaved like ‘chavs’, jostling at the free bar, exposing their behinds and being sick after drinking too much alcohol.
Former financier Mr Rutland, 31, was banned for insider trading last year.
The Financial Services Authority reduced his fine from £160,000 to £30,000 due to his ‘financial circumstances’ and a ‘debilitating illness’.He proposed within a month of meeting Miss Ecclestone in January this year.
In a 15-minute speech after the wedding ceremony, he explained how they fell in love, and praised her charity work, adding: ‘She owes her character to both her very remarkable parents.’Miss Ecclestone helps fundraise for Great Ormond Street Hospital in London — by auctioning off her old clothes.
Mr Rutland joked about his bride’s notorious shopping habits. In the same evening, she wore three couture gowns — the Vera Wang dress, another long, white gown believed to be designed by Versace, and a short sequinned ‘flapper’ dress, thought to be by Alexander McQueen, for the dancing — but he denied she was ‘shallow’, saying: ‘Tamara is the most caring and sensitive person I know by a mile.
'She is incredibly faithful and loyal, and is an incredible sister, daughter and friend. I love you with all my heart.’
Mr Rutland has reportedly signed a pre-nuptial agreement, meaning he will not take any of Miss Ecclestone’s wealth if they divorce.But as her husband, he is now free to enjoy her opulent lifestyle to the full.
Miss Ecclestone’s sister Petra, 24, who also gave a speech, and her 55-year-old mother Slavica — who is divorced from Bernie — arrived on Sunday to help with preparations.
Mr Rutland’s friends from Essex mingled with Miss Ecclestone’s celebrity guests, who included model and TV presenter Lizzie Cundy, former It-girl Tamara Beckwith, Girls Aloud singer Nicola Roberts, actor Jason Statham and his girlfriend, model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.
By day, the younger guests partied next to the Grand Hotel’s 50 m infinity pool. The women had white dresses, the men white shorts and bare chests.
As the guests sipped on strawberry daiquiris and snacked on squid and oysters, nearby ramblers were heard complaining that the blaring music had disrupted the peaceful setting.
Yesterday, the wedding party dressed in white for a relaxed barbecue on Passable Beach, a mile away from the hotel.
However, some guests complained the event did not quite match up to the grandeur expected of the Cap-Ferrat, one of the most exclusive stretches of the French Riviera.
One said: ‘It felt like a free-for-all. It was all very informal and relaxed, and guests were left to go up and get their own drinks.‘It was almost too informal. There were around 150 guests in total and around 40 to 50 were Jay’s friends.
‘It was very chavvy. During the three-day event, some of them were mooning — and one was seen throwing up after over-indulging. A lot of Tamara’s friends thought there might be eligible bachelors they could meet, but many couldn’t wait to leave the party.’
One figure remained above it all - Tamara’s billionaire father Bernie.
Despite reports to the contrary, the wedding was not funded by the deep pockets of Mr Rutland’s new father-in-law, 82-year-old Mr Ecclestone, who arrived late after attending the Montreal Grand Prix. ‘He’s not paying a penny towards it,’ says a close friend. ‘Tamara has paid for it all herself.’
