Denise Nolan marries fiancé Tom Anderson with her sisters by her side

Denise Nolan has tied the knot with her fiancé Tom Anderson after a three decade engagement and 47 years together.

The Nolans singer, 72, finally walked down the aisle with her longtime partner, 77, on Monday on the famous Blackpool promenade, surrounded by her sisters.

The couple first met in 1977, while Denise was singing in The Nolans and Tom was the drummer at the London Rooms in the West End, going on to play in her band when she went solo.

He soon popped the question to the star in the 90s, but the pair didn’t feel the need to set an actual date, until Tom’s diagnosed with Parkinson’s six years ago and they decided it was time to make things official.

Denise was joined by her sisters Linda, 65, Coleen, 59, Anne, 73, and Maureen, 70, for the big day, while the ceremony included a special tribute to late sister Bernie, who died aged 52 in 2013.

And during the reception, the sister reunited to perform together once more, complete with their original dance routines.

While sister Linda made a hugely generous gesture to the happy couple, after moving in with them a year ago amid her cancer battle.

She was first diagnosed with stage-three breast cancer in 2005 before getting the all-clear in 2006, but the disease sadly returned in 2017 and then spread to her liver and brain. 

After all of Denise’s support through her treatment, she decided to help pay for her and Tom’s nuptials to say thank you.

Opening up about the big day to OK!, she gushed: ‘It was such an emotional experience for all of us, it felt like a fairytale come true. Watching Denise walk down the aisle, knowing all the years of love, trials, and triumphs she and Tom have shared, brought tears to my eyes.

‘We’ve faced so much together, and being there with my sisters, celebrating such a beautiful union, made me feel deeply grateful for the bond we share.With everything that’s happened in my own life, moments like these become even more precious. 

‘We’ve always been each other’s pillars of strength, but on the day, the joy and love in the air were palpable. It was a day filled with laughter, tears, and memories that I will cherish forever. Life is unpredictable and often tough, but moments like these, surrounded by those we love, make it all worthwhile.’

Instead of wearing a traditional white wedding dress, Denise opted for a long yellow dress adorned with sequins, teamed with a sparkly navy blue blazer and matching fascinator.

Her brother Brian walked her down the aisle to her own cover of Frank Sinatra’s You, My Love You and she and Tom exchanged rings inscribed with the words: ‘I love you’, with Denise revealing that ‘everyone in the room was crying’.

During the speeches, she addressed a special reading to Tom, including the quote: ‘The day I met you, I found my missing piece. Meeting you was fate, becoming your partner was a choice, but falling in love with you was beyond my control.’

In honour of her late sister Bernie, a recording of the family singing together at her wedding to Steve Doneathy in 1996 was played during the ceremony and one of Bernie’s songs also played at the reception.

Denise explained: ‘Obviously, not a day goes by where we don’t think of her. But you can’t bring it up too much because it becomes very sad. She was such a presence in our lives. She was a real extrovert and such fun. So any party we have, we know she should be there.’

The first dance was to Stevie Wonder’s Sunshine of My Life, before all the Nolan sisters took to the floor for an impromptu performance.

Denise recalled: ‘The DJ had a whole set of the girls’ songs, so he played them and the girls did all the routines, which everybody loved. All of us really do like to dance! 

‘Coleen went to change from her lovely fancy shoes into her trainers because she wanted to dance, and I ended up dancing in my bare feet because my shoes were killing me.’ 

The couple ended up not getting home until midnight after partying the night away with their loved ones including brothers Tom Jr and Brian, and Coleen’s boyfriend Michael Jones, as well as her son Jake Roche.

Denise and Tom are heading on their honeymoon this week to Scarborough, but revealed it would be another family affair, saying that Linda, Maureen and Anne were coming along.