News | Entertainment
21 Jan 2026 22:21
NZCity News
NZCity CalculatorReturn to NZCity

  • Start Page
  • Personalise
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • Finance
  • Shopping
  • Jobs
  • Horoscopes
  • Lotto Results
  • Photo Gallery
  • Site Gallery
  • TVNow
  • Dating
  • SearchNZ
  • NZSearch
  • Crime.co.nz
  • RugbyLeague
  • Make Home
  • About NZCity
  • Contact NZCity
  • Your Privacy
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Join for Free

  •   Home > News > Entertainment

    Madonna's wedding dress almost didn't make it to her and Sean Penn's wedding

    The Queen of Pop tied the knot with her now ex-husband in 1985, and her longtime costume designer Marlene Stewart has recalled how the "hardest part" of working on the iconic gown was "getting it to the wedding"


    She told Best magazine: "It was at a house in Malibu. The roads were inaccessible because the press were everywhere.

    "We'd intended to do a fitting and take photographs. But the police stopped me! I insisted I had to get through.

    "There were no cell phones, so you had pagers and I was just trying to page somebody!"

    Marlene was "eventually" able to make it through with the gown.

    She added: "Eventually, I got through and Herb Ritts [the photographer of Madonna's 'True Blue' album cover] took a photo of her getting ready in the bathroom, and I was under the dress, pulling up the garter belt!"

    When it comes to the wedding look itself, Marlene was inspired by Madonna's own ideas for her outfit.

    She recalled: "[Madonna] said, I'm going to wear a black bowler hat.' I wanted to balance the masculine for the dress and do classic feminine.

    "The idea was that it was fun and provocative. I sketched out a classic, ballerina look: silk tulle, sweetheart neckline, very simple and clean."

    Meanwhile, Marline hailed the 'Like A Prayer' icon - who divorce from Penn after just four years of marriage - as the "original influencer".

    She said: "She was the original influencer! She stated her ideas in a way that was free at the time, and certainly controversial, because it hadn't been done by many female artists.

    "The best thing about working with someone is that they're present, and they focus.

    "She had that from the beginning... It really paved the way for young women to break through societal norms."

    © 2026 Bang Showbiz, NZCity

     Other Entertainment News
     21 Jan: Kourtney Kardashian is three years sober
     21 Jan: Wayne Rooney has claimed he's "deaf in my left ear"
     21 Jan: Ansel Elgort has quietly become a father
     21 Jan: Finn Wolfhard used his SNL hosting debut to poke fun at the fact that he and his co-stars are still often viewed as "the kids from Stranger Things"
     21 Jan: Sophie Turner admits that her acting career "stalled" because she had children at an early age
     21 Jan: Golda Rosheuvel based her Bridgerton character on her late mother
     21 Jan: Hayden Panettiere found writing her memoir to be a "therapeutic experience"
     Top Stories

    RUGBY RUGBY
    The Black Sticks women are vowing to capitalize on preparation time before August's hockey World Cup in Belgium and the Netherlands More...


    BUSINESS BUSINESS
    Pic's Peanut Butter is boasting huge financial success, with sales reaching 40-million dollars More...



     Today's News

    Hockey:
    The Black Sticks women are vowing to capitalize on preparation time before August's hockey World Cup in Belgium and the Netherlands 21:57

    Entertainment:
    Kourtney Kardashian is three years sober 21:40

    Law and Order:
    A person's suffered serious injuries after an assault in Auckland's Mount Wellington 21:17

    Entertainment:
    Wayne Rooney has claimed he's "deaf in my left ear" 21:10

    International:
    Have you been gifted an ancestry DNA test? The results could be 'life-altering' 21:07

    Entertainment:
    Ansel Elgort has quietly become a father 20:40

    National:
    Rob Hirst was not the figurehead of Midnight Oil – but he was its backbone 20:17

    Entertainment:
    Finn Wolfhard used his SNL hosting debut to poke fun at the fact that he and his co-stars are still often viewed as "the kids from Stranger Things" 20:10

    National:
    As Trump’s threats over Greenland escalate, will Europe use its ‘trade bazooka’? 20:07

    Entertainment:
    Sophie Turner admits that her acting career "stalled" because she had children at an early age 19:40


     News Search






    Power Search


    © 2026 New Zealand City Ltd