Scuffle spoils ‘secret’ Sarah-Matteo wedding
Credit to Author: Iza Iglesias, TMT| Date: Fri, 21 Feb 2020 16:14:30 +0000
What was supposed to be a secret civil wedding for celebrity couple Matteo Guidicelli and Sarah Geronimo ended up as a raucous media event Thursday night.
First the bride’s mother showed up unannounced at the scene of the ceremony and wanted to talk her daughter into calling off the wedding.
Then the groom punched the bride’s bodyguard, believing he had divulged the ceremony to the bride’s mother.
Earlier on Thursday, rumors buzzed online that Guidicelli and Geronimo — “AshMatt” to their fans — were finally tying the knot that night.
Doubts were cast on the rumors because Geronimo was at the ABS-CBN compound in Quezon City from morning through late afternoon, rehearsing for “The Voice Teens,” a singing competition in which she is one of the judges.
A show staff member Carlo Yanesa, tweeted a video of himself with Geronimo and others, saying in jest, “Dito po ba ang venue (Is this the venue)?”
ABS-CBN music coordinator Evi Zapanta shared the video on her Twitter account with the caption, “Madaling araw ba yan? Hanggang gabi tayo dito sa [The Voice Teens] eh (Is the wedding happening at dawn? We’re working here until midnight).”
Writer Mark Joseph Buenafe also shared a photo of Geronimo in rehearsal as if to show a bride wouldn’t be working on her big day.
The intrigue was heightened because the actress-singer’s mother, Divine Geronimo, had made it known she does not approve of her daughter’s relationship with Guidicelli.
Veteran entertainment columnist Cristy Fermin wrote that Guidicelli was not even allowed to visit Geronimo backstage on the first day of her two-night Valentine concert with Regine Velasquez last weekend. Fans reckoned it was the reason why the actor and army reservist had to hand his bouquet of flowers to Geronimo during her performance.
But the buzz became louder when Geronimo promptly left after the The Voice Teens rehearsal.
Details of what happened next began to surface. But most of it came from the statement submitted by Geronimo’s bodyguard, Jerry Tamara, to the Taguig City police before dawn Friday.
Tamara said the wedding took place at the posh Shangrila The Fort in Bonifacio Global City around 11 p.m. Thursday.
Before dawn Friday, Divine Geronimo “arrived unexpectedly” at the hotel and asked to talk to her 31-year-old singer-daughter. Apparently Mommy Divine, as she is called in showbiz circles, was not aware Sarah was getting married that night.
Surprised to see Mommy Divine, the 29-year-old Guidicelli turned to Tamara, accusing him of spilling the beans and punching him in the throat.
Police said Tamara presented a temporary medical certificate as proof of his injury, but he refused to file a case against Guidicelli.
Taguig police chief Col. Celso Rodriguez said the 31-year-old Tamara was hired by Sarah’s family to keep an eye on her because they had never approved of her relationship with Guidicelli.
All these despite Guidicelli’s heartfelt message to Geronimo’s parents on social media following their engagement where he apologized to the Geronimos for past issues.
He wrote on Facebook: “Tito Delfin and Tita Divine, if there have been hard feelings or events that were not supposed to happen in the past, I humbly apologize. I assure you that I will give Sarah a happy life with the best of my capabilities. With pure, honest love and respect. We wish to move forward with our life plans and begin this brand new chapter of our life.
“Mahal na mahal ko po si Sarah. Mahal ko din po kayong magulang n’ya at mga kapatid n’ya. Hangad ko po na maging isang pamilya tayo. Pangako ko po na aalagan ko si Sarah na kapareho ng pangangalaga n’yo sa kanya.”
Geronimo and Guidicelli have largely kept their relationship private. They confirmed their relationship in 2014, after nearly a year of being a couple. They also announced their engagement via Instagram in November 2019 also following “about a year” of Guidicelli’s proposal, according to the actor’s younger brother Paolo.
WITH JAN ARCILLA