She was given the name Sporty when she joined theย Spice Girls, but when Melanie Chisholm walks down the aisle today, her wedding will be a very posh affair.
The Daily Mail can reveal that she is to marry her Australian model boyfriend Chris Dingwall at the stunning Country House Cumbria on Saturday afternoon. The property is co-owned by West End actor Ben Forster, who starred alongsideย Mel Cย in rock musical Jesus Christ Superstar in 2013.
Sources say that the couple wanted an ‘intimate’ wedding, and while they will be joined by her fellow Spice Girlsย Emma Bunton, Melanie Brown and Geri Halliwell-Horner, it is expected to be a small affair.
A source told the Daily Mail: ‘Mel and Chris wanted an understated wedding; she didn’t want a big flashy day, but something smaller and very classy. Mel swore she would never get married so having a big do wasn’t really for her.
‘It is the perfect venue for them, totally out of the way but in the most beautiful place.
‘Victoria won’t be there, but she loves Mel, and she will have made sure that she sends a beautiful present. It is strange that Mel decided to get married on the weekend of the World Cup final but it works for them.’
Nestled in the picturesque Cumbrian countryside, the Country House Cumbria claims to be the ‘perfect setting for an elopement, small, sophisticated wedding’, which Mel is said to have been keen to have.
Mel C will tie the knot with Aussie model Chris Dingwall in a ‘low-key’ Lake District ceremony with all Spice Girls attending except Victoria Beckham
Country House Cumbria is owned by West End actor Ben Forster, who starred alongside Mel C in the rock musical Jesus Christ Superstar in 2013
The Spice Girl, 52, had not announced her engagement to the model, who is believed to be in his 40s, but she is ‘completely head over heels and has never been happier’
Mel Cย and Ben Forster attend the press night performance of Evita at the Dominion Theatre in London in 2014
The Victorian hotel in Castle Carrock has just six rooms, but it has a sprawling lawn where guests are expected to celebrate the nuptials.
It is owned by Forster and his long-term partner, propertyย developer Paul Longman. They property, which had been built in 1862, had been sitting empty for 12 years, and they spent two years transforming it into a luxury retreat.
Mel C, 52, is the final Spice Girl to marry after she met Dingwall, thought to be in his 40s, in 2023 on the exclusive dating app, Raya.
She admitted she originally thought she was finished with romance following her split from previous long-term partners, including property developer Thomas Starr, with whom she shares her 17-year-old daughter, Scarlett.
But during a night out at the pub, her friends convinced her toย download the app, turning the search for a partner into a game they jokingly dubbed ‘boy Bingo’.
Mel matched with Chris while she was in London and he was living in Sydney.
Despite the distance, she had an upcoming Australian DJ tour planned and decided to take a chance on the model.
Their first official date reportedly took place in Sydney in November 2023.
After landing at 7am, Mel stayed awake all day to beat the jet lag before meeting Chris for a dinner date that same evening. And the rest, they say, is history.
