Join the OK! VIP newsletter and receive big exclusives to your inbox before anyone else!More Newsletters SubscribePlease enter a valid emailSomething went wrong, please try again later.More NewslettersWe use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. More infoThank you for subscribing!We have more newslettersShow me See OurPrivacy Notice See OurPrivacy Notice×Group 28 Join the OK! VIP newsletter and receive big exclusives to your inbox before anyone else!Invalid emailSomething went wrong, please try again later.Sign UpNo thanks, closeWe use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. More info×Group 28Thank you for subscribing!We have more newslettersShow MeNo thanks, closeSee our
Privacy NoticeAfter getting engaged in January 2020, Jordan Banjo and his long-term partner Naomi Courts finally tied the knot surrounded by their friends, family and his Diversity co-stars. The pair were joined on their special day by children Cassius and Mayowa, who also had the best day of their lives. One year on from their magical wedding we look back on their stunning photos – exclusively for OK! readers. Their wedding was put on hold in 2021 because of the pandemic, but in a day filled with love and emotion, Jordan Banjo finally married his partner of seven years Naomi Courts. The couple were surrounded by family and friends as they tied the knot at Ashridge House in Hertfordshire. Their son, Cassius, four, and three-year-old daughter Mayowa, known as Mimi, were pageboy and flower girl. “Without sounding cringey, people say, ‘It was the best day of my life’ and you’re like, ‘Really I’m sure it was quite stressful.’ But it’s like your slice of your own personal little fairy tale,” Diversity and KISS FM star Jordan tells OK! from South Africa, where the loved-up couple are on honeymoon. Naomi, 30, who he fondly called Nay throughout our interview, adds, “It was beautiful from start to finish. It was just perfect.”
The couple described their big day as “beautiful from start to finish”
Jordan Banjo’s unseen wedding photos in full – kids’ roles to famous guests
View gallery
Inside Jordan and Naomi Banjo’s romantic anniversary getaway including new rings and wedding cake replica
View gallery
The celebrations, on 14 August 2022, kicked off at 1.30pm with the couple exchanging their vows in the chapel. There may have been a few jitters before the ceremony, but not from the bride or groom. “Weirdly enough I was so calm,” Naomi says. “I thought I was going to be a nervous wreck. The bridesmaids were shaking.” Jordan, 29, added, “The only thing I was nervous for is the fact I didn’t know what was happening on my own wedding day. I was a guest there myself. I’ve been away most of this year [on tour]. I’ll hold my hands up and say Nay absolutely smashed it. She sorted the whole wedding and really made it a magical day. But on the flip side of it, I wasn’t nervous to get married.” Hours before the ceremony, Jordan was preparing for his nuptials with the aid of his two best men, brother Ashley and KISS co-presenter Perri Kiely, as well as his dad and Naomi’s father.
There was no nerves from this bride and groom
“It was us five getting ready together and chatting,” he recalls. “I was starting to feel a little bit nervous as we were getting closer, but once I walked out and started greeting everyone and saw everyone there all the nerves disappeared. Essentially, it’s a room filled with your friends and family who you love and want to be there and in a weird way they helped calm me down.” Naomi looked sensational in a glittering gold gown from designer Berta. She says, “I went there with the idea of this wedding dress which I had known about for about five years. It’s a very famous Berta dress and I was like, ‘That is the one.’ I put it on and I was really underwhelmed. “The lady was like, ‘Try this dress we’ve got, it’s brand new.’ I put it on and I walked out and looked in the mirror and cried. I felt like a proper bride. I was in love with my dress the whole time and I could not wait to get it out and wear it.”
Naomi fell in love with her sparkly Berta dress
Naomi entered the chapel on the arm her father to the sound of James Arthur’s Say You Won’t Let Go played by a string quartet. And speaking of the moment he saw his bride, Jordan says, “It stopped me in my tracks for a second, because first of all it was a direct opposite dress to what I thought Nay would go for. I thought she’d go for a fishtail dress. When I saw the dress, not to sound cringe, but I was like, ‘Jeez she looks like a real-life princess.’ Nay always has her hair down, and she had her hair up, her make-up looked beautiful. Everything about her was not what I expected, but in a really positive way. I thought she looked stunning. I thought, ‘Ah look, there’s the rest of my life.’” While the ceremony was in full flow, daughter Mimi made her presence felt. “I call her a little Tasmanian devil as she always does something – she’s quite clumsy,” reveals the Britain’s Got Talent and I’m A Celebrity star. “She’s one way and then Cassius is completely the other. He loves to play, but when he’s in a room filled with new people, like a normal toddler he gets a bit shy. “So we’re in the middle of the service and then the guy’s reading all the vows and I feel like I’m in Game Of Thrones. I look behind me and my daughter Mimi is hanging on to one of the pews, swings underneath and boots over a glass vase which smashed in the middle of the service. I was like, ‘Thank you Mimi’ and everyone in the chapel started laughing.”
Daughter Mimi was a flower girl
Luckily, this was before the priest asked guests whether they had any objections! “I was also having a bit of a freak out because Perri, for the past six months, has been saying it’s his dream to object at a wedding,” Jordan laughs. After the ceremony, the newlyweds celebrated with a Drunk In Love cocktail and a Mint To Be Mojito mocktail.
The newlyweds enjoyed cocktails after the ceremony
Naomi’s five bridesmaids – her best friend and maid of honour Leanne, two other friends, Jordan’s sister Talisa and Ashley’s wife Francesca – had a special surprise for her. She said, “They got us the most beautiful gift, which was this live painter – I didn’t even know she was there. She snuck into the chapel, took a picture of us and then literally did this live painting in the middle of our drinks reception. I planned this wedding, every single fine detail, so I was like, ‘Who is this?’ “They were just amazing. They’re the closest girls in my life. They threw me the most insane ‘henchella’, which was a hen party-themed Coachella at home. Then we went to Vegas and had an amazing time there.”
Guests enjoyed a three-course wedding breakfast
(Image: Copyright 2022. All rights reserved.)
The Banjo family
A wedding feast of chicken liver parfait starter and tornado of beef fillet main was finished off with a trio of desserts, vanilla pod crème brûlée, chocolate caramel cake and crispy apple nougat – and this was followed by the speeches. “The speeches were a bit of an emotional roller-coaster,” Naomi says. “My mum did a speech and it was such a beautiful speech and so unexpected, because originally we were only going to have Jord’s best men do a speech. “And then Ash went on and you obviously always do a lot of sentimental stuff, but then he did a lot of funny stuff. It was so up and down, emotions and everyone was laughing and crying. Then obviously Pel [Perri] got involved and we had no idea Pel was going to do anything.”
Jordan with best men Ashley and Perri – the boys wowed with their speech
Jordan had no idea Perri was going to get involved with the speeches
(Image: Copyright 2022. All rights reserved.)
Jordan added, “The thing about Ash, you imagine a best man’s speech and then he stands up and you’re like, ‘Here we go.’ Then of course there was the normal stuff of bigging-up Nay, saying how amazing she looked, taking the mick out of me… But part way through he had literally written a whole spoken word song and then went on an entire couple of verses of rhyme and spoken word. It was as much as a performance as it was a speech. You don’t expect anything less.” The first dance got underway at 7.30pm with the couple leading off to an acoustic version of Justin Bieber’s Holy by choir Urban Voices Collective, which has supported Diversity on tour. Burgers and hotdogs were served in the evening alongside a desserts table, while the dancing continued to a DJ, saxophonist and bongo player. As it was a Diversity wedding we expect there were some pretty impressive dance moves going on, too.
Jordan and Naomi said the speeches were emotional
“It started off as normal wedding dancing and at a point there was a circle in the middle of the dance floor and each one of the Diversity boys, including myself, is in there at some point dancing around,” says Jordan. We are also interested to know what his KISS FM co-star Tyler West’s moves were like, as he’s all geared up to take part in the latest season of Strictly Come Dancing. “Not bad,” Jordan says. “I’ve always said this about Tyler, he’s always had rhythm, always been able to move. I’m confident that he’s going to absolutely smash it.
Their first dance was to a rendition of Justin Bieber’s Holy
“And he’s one of the sweetest guys you’ll ever meet. For someone who is a 6ft 3in ripped-to-shreds good-looking dude with all the chat in the world, you’d think he has every reason to not be one of the nicest people you will ever meet. But he is. I’m really hoping he goes all the way.” As the guests battled with the heat, layers of clothing started to come off, ties were loosened and shirts unfastened in a scene Jordan describes as a “wedding crossed with Magic Mike”. A magician, roulette table and photo booth offering glossy Kardashian-style black and white snaps were also laid on. And while it may have been a magical 24 hours for the couple and their adult guests, it was also a great fun day for the children, who had special entertainment provided by Safe and Sound events.
The day was magical for all
(Image: Copyright 2022. All rights reserved.)
“The kids had their own room. They had bouncy castles, soft play, arts and crafts. We didn’t see the kids,” Naomi says. “When we did see them, they came running out in these fancy-dress costumes. All the kids loved it.” Celebrations wrapped up at 1.30am and the newlyweds are now looking forward to their future together. “I feel like it gives you a different sense of a whole new journey,” says Naomi. “My excuse now is, ‘I’m your wife now, so I can do that.’ It’s lovely.” Jordan, who received messages of congratulations from the likes of Alesha Dixon and Jake Quickenden, laughs, “For me not much has changed – I’ve been under the thumb for seven years.”
The newlyweds are open to the idea of expanding their family
(Image: Copyright 2022. All rights reserved.)
So will they be looking to add another member to their family? “At the moment we’re very grateful for our little boy and little girl. That’s the perfect situation for us – but who knows?” says Naomi. “I think we’re open to the idea, but we’re not trying,” adds Jordan.Story SavedYou can find this story in My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.Follow OK! MagazineFacebookTwitterCommentMore OnJordan BanjoCelebrity weddingsVIP Club
