Melanie Brown’s secret marriage to Stephen Belafonte

When Melanie Brown said she would marry boyfriend Stephen Belafonte, it now appears that she already had done.

The couple had been friends for years before they started dating in May and have now confirmed rumours that they married in Las Vegas on 6th June.

The pair were married by Rev Marie Stapleton at the “drive-thru” Special Memory Wedding Chapel in the city for the grand sum of $59. Rev Stapleton recalls: “They paid the 59 dollars on his Visa card. They made no big deal of it. I don’t think she had a wedding dress.”

Melanie was reportedly annoyed that the news broke after the marriage certificate was leaked to the media: “I’ve been caught red-handed. I didn’t want anyone to know until I’d talked to my family about it.”

But she confirmed the news last night: “Stephen and I have known each other for seven years. We wanted to make a commitment.”

“We wanted it to be private and have a big wedding with our families later in the year.”

Melanie, who gave birth to daughter Angel in April, has previously said Stephen was a “really good friend” to her during her pregnancy and that he’s a “really sweet guy”.

On confirming the wedding news yesterday, her spokesperson added: “Mel and Stephen have know each other for many years and were great friends first. Now they are deeply in love. The two are very happy together.”

The Spice Girl was previously married to Jimmy Gulzar, the father of her older child Phoenix Chi, before divorcing in 2001.