22 January 2024 , 11:33
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Penny Lancaster and Rod Stewart have spent more than two decades together, but their love story has been far from plain sailing.
It took decades for the megastar to find lasting romance and settle down, having had three wives and eight children with five different mothers along the way. But when he laid eyes on model Penny, he knew it was meant to be.
Even after all these years, the pair say they have the same electric connection as when they first met. But the music legend was left heartbroken when they briefly split - and was left longingly looking at her photograph every night before he went to bed. Here, we take a look at Penny and Rod's wild romance...
Rod and Penny pictured with their two sons
The couple have been married for 20 years (Dave Benett/Getty Images for Wol)Rod was first married to Alana Stewart from 1979 to 1984, and the couple share two children - daughter Kimberly, 43, and son Sean, 42. His second wife was model Rachel Hunter from 1990 to 2006, with whom he shares daughter Renee, 30, and son Liam, 28.
He shares 35-year-old daughter Ruby with ex-girlfriend Kelly Emberg, and Sarah, 59, with another ex-partner, Susanna Boffey. With Penny, who is 27 years his junior, Rod has sons Alastair, 17, and Aiden, 11.
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Rod, now 79, and 52-year-old Penny first crossed paths in the late 1990s, when he hired the budding photographer to take photos of him while on tour. Their relationship got off to a slow and steady start and in 2005, he popped the question at the top of the Eiffel Tower, with Penny of course saying 'yes'.
They tied the knot two years later in 2007 in a glamorous ceremony in Italy, in front of 100 family and friends. Ten years later they renewed their vows in an intimate ceremony at their Essex Home.
Penny said: "Being able to reflect on those 10 years, and say those words to one another and still know we mean them is important. This felt more special. You get married with the hope that you'll be together; when we renewed our vows, we said them not with just hope, but with reassurance. Along with hope, there is also faith, love and bringing all the family together."
Speaking with Hello! Rod added: "Penny is my whole world. What a girl. Love means many things to many people but to me, it's wanting to share everything with the one you love and I love Penny more now than ever, if that is at all possible. It was a beautifully romantic thing to do. We're not proving anything, just sharing our love with our friends and family."
However the pair went through a devastating rough patch, with Penny needing time away from the relationship. Heartbroken Rod was left gazing at a photo of Penny every night and morning after she walked out him. They eventually patched up their problems and the Sailing star decided to sing about his ordeal on his album, Time. Rod explained: "I cover Tom Waits' Picture In A Frame.
Penny is Rod's third wife (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)"Penny and I broke up for two weeks and the song is about that time. I asked her for a photo of herself in a frame so that I could see her when I went to bed and when I woke up." He then added that he had "taken a lot of risks" when it came to romance - but that he learnt women like to hear the truth, and they hate smoking and gambling.
Speaking to Australian magazine Life in 2013, Rod went on to say he has learnt valuable lessons when it comes to marriage and lasting romance. "My relationship rule is 'Don't argue after a glass of wine' leave debating until the morning,'" he explained.
"I have always loved women, won some, lost some, but it's not about the magic touch, it's about being a better person and a good listener. I met Penny in my 50s and if I had not learnt by that point in my life I was never going to." And in a 2021 interview with People, Rod explained the secret to his enduring romance with Penny.
"Intimacy is the most important thing in a relationship.' Don't take it for granted," the singer recalled. "I'm not talking about sex, but a kiss and a cuddle and a hold," he explained. "Penny and I do that every morning. We hug each other — sometimes in bed, sometimes out of bed, all throughout the day. It's a wonderful relationship. Lucky geezer, aren't I?"
He and Penny sadly went through the mill to have their two boys though. Penny suffered two miscarriages, and they turned to IVF to help conceive their youngest. She has opened up about working on their marriage during her panel duties on Loose Women and told the Mirror that it's about caring for her husband as much as their children.
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"I try and split my time between my eldest child – Rod – and my other two boys," she giggled. "Most men are still needy, especially when you have been in a long relationship before children arrive, and then children do take up a big part of your time and men feel they are left out a bit.
"So I make a very conscious effort to dedicate time - the two of us going out for dinner or having breakfast together. Just a moment amongst the madness, he still needs attention."
And it appears their love continues to prevail, as just last year they reportedly renewed their vows to each other for the second time whilst Rod was touring Down Under. The Maggie May star was claimed to have "spaced out his tour" so his children could attend the ceremony, according to Woman's Day magazine.
A friend close to the family, said: "There's a very good reason why Rod's insisted he space out his tour dates – it's the perfect place and the perfect time to renew their wedding vows." The insider claimed Penny and Rod have been wanting to renew their vows for a while, adding: "Now they can't wait and are using this chance to do something special while here."
After cementing their vows during their first renewal, Penny said of their 15-year stint: "Our honeymoon period seems to have lasted forever, we still have a connection like we just met."