Who is Graham Cooper? Paul Burrell’s husband and lawyer
PAUL BURRELL divorced his wife and married his partner after coming out as gay.
Princess Diana‘s former butler and close confidante, tied the knot in a civil partnership ceremony in 2017. Here’s the lowdown on Burrell’s partner…
Who is Graham Cooper?
Graham Cooper is a lawyer and the husband of Paul Burrell.
The 63-year-old had reportedly been seeing Burrell secretly for some 10 years.
The pair were formerly business partners and are said to have kept their relationship quiet for some time, until Burrell told his ex-wife and sons in 2016.
Burrell’s ex-wife, Maria Cosgrove, feared for the reaction of her sons, but they were supportive of their dad’s decision.
Princess Diana’s former butler, who made his millions spilling Royal secrets, writing books and as a star on ITV’s I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here in 2004, repeatedly denied claims that he was gay — despite various rumours and allegations.
In 2008 he faced claims from an alleged former lover that they had been together in secret.
It was also claimed he seduced a male friend of stargazer Russell Grant after they appeared on TV together.
But he came out in March 2017 and went on to marry Graham just weeks later.
Barbra Streisand’s Some Enchanted Evening was played as the happy couple, neither of whom are Scottish, walked up the aisle hand in hand.
When did Graham Cooper and Paul Burrell get married?
Cooper and Burrell were wed in April 2017 at the Linthwaite Hotel in Bowness, Cumbria.
The couple tied the knot just a month after Burrell revealed that he was gay.
The civil partnership ceremony reportedly cost the couple £30,000 and they had an intimate ceremony with 60 guests.
Burrell wore a pair of blue cufflinks that Princess Diana had gifted to him, as well as a Royal Victorian Medal which he was presented by the Queen in 1988 for his royal service.
When asked about the wedding, Burrell said: “Everything about the day has been perfect, made even more wonderful by the fact that my two sons were here to share the occasion.
“There’s no more hiding my unbridled happiness now. Life is about being true to who you are and, for the first time ever, I’m able to stand proudly beside my husband and say, ‘This is who I am.'”
In July 2019, the pair retired in their 19th-century mock-Tudor house in Cheshire.
Do Graham Cooper and Paul Burrell have any children?
Cooper and Burrell do not have any children together, although Burrell has two children with his ex-wife, Maria Cosgrove.
The former-butler’s sons Alex, 37, and Nick, 33, both attended their dad’s wedding to Cooper in 2017.
They flew in from their homes in the US to be present at the event.
In a TV interview in 2017, Burrell said: “I still love my wife and I love my boys – they are the best thing that ever happened to me in my lifetime”.