A SPARKLING array of stars came to a Kent village to see entertainer Jools Holland tie the knot.

The musician and television presenter married his long-term partner Christabel McEwen at historic St James’ Church at Cooling, near Rochester.

Fellow musicians, including Lulu, Ringo Starr and Mick Hucknall, attended Tuesday's star-studded event.

Other famous faces, included comediennes Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders with their respective partners Lenny Henry and Adrian Edmondson and their children.

Other celebrities included actors Stephen Fry and Robbie Coltrane and the television presenter Roland Rivron.

It is believed Ringo Starr and his wife, former Bond girl Barbara Bach, arrived by helicopter in a nearby field.

The half-hour ceremony was private but hundreds of villagers turned out to cheer the happy couple as they emerged from the church.

The reception was helds at nearby Cooling Castle Barn, not far from the couple’s Cooling Castle home.

Christabel wore a stunning cream knee-length dress, with lace over-lay and Jools wore top-hat and tails, which was lined with a piano key motif.

As the celebrity guests left the churchyard, Adrian Edmondson was asked how the wedding went and he jokily replied: "It was dreadful."

The couple had to get a special licence from the Archbishop of Canterbury to be able to use the 200-capacity church which was closed as a church in 1975 but is occasionally used for weddings.

Jools, 47, plays piano with his own band, Jools Holland’s Rhythm and Blues Orchestra, and was made an OBE for services to music in November 2003. Christabel, 43, is a sculptor.

The couple have a 14-year-old daughter, Mabel and also have children from previous relationships.

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