The singer’s late husband died of throat cancer on Jan. 14, 2016
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Céline Dion is honoring her husband, René Angélil, on what would have been their 30th wedding anniversary. Angélil died of throat cancer on Jan. 14, 2016, two days before what would have been his 74th birthday.
The celebrated singer, 56, posted a heartfelt message on Instagram that featured a photo of her and Angélil at their wedding in 1994. In the sweet image, Dion was photographed in her bridal headpiece and veil as she stared into Angélil’s eyes and grabbed his cheeks. He held her hips and looked into her eyes.
“You still fill our hearts, every day. You are everything for us. We miss you so much. Happy 30th anniversary, mon amour,” Dion captioned the post, signing it from herself and the couple’s three children: René-Charles, 23, and 14-year-old twins, Nelson and Eddy.
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They first met in 1980 when a 12-year-old Dion sang for him in an audition. From that point, he became her manager, and the two worked together for seven years before they started dating in 1987 when Dion was 19 years old. Initially, she kept their relationship private because she was apprehensive about public opinion.
“I was afraid of what people would think,” she told PEOPLE in 1994. Eventually, she wanted to share her love for Angélil with the world. “When you’re in love, you want to scream it to the world.”
They went public with their relationship after they were already engaged for a couple of years. “When I was at the age to be able to say to people [we were together] … It was like bang! Love! Love always wins,” Dion wrote in her memoir.
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They tied the knot on Dec. 17, 1994 at Montréal’s Notre-Dame Basilica, and it was broadcast live on television in Canada. In April 2024, she told Vogue that she wouldn’t change a thing about the lavish event.
“This is a moment that will be with me for the rest of my life,” she said. “The dress couldn’t have been big enough. I could’ve had three times the size on my head. I could’ve had six different dresses that night because he [Angélil] was, and still is, such a wonderful human being. He brought [out] the best in me. He really did.”
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Four years after they said “I do,” Angélil was diagnosed with throat cancer. In 2000, the couple shared the news that Angélil was declared cancer-free. That same year, the couple celebrated with a vow renewal in Vegas. Angélil’s cancer returned in 2014, two years before his death.
In December 2022, Dion publicly revealed her stiff-person syndrome diagnosis.
In June, she told PEOPLE that she travels for her treatments and “always brings pictures” of Angélil. “And we have pictures, of course, all over the place in the house.”
“I’m still married to René. He’s still my husband,” she told PEOPLE. “He will always be.”
Celine Dion remembers late husband Rene Angelil on 30th wedding anniversary
Celine Dion has remembered her late husband Rene Angelil in a moving tribute on the date of their 30th wedding anniversary.
The superstar singer, 56, married her former manager in 1994 and they became parents to three sons – Rene-Charles, 23, and 14-year-old twins Eddy and Nelson – but she lost him in 2016 aged 73 after a battle with throat cancer – now Celine has shared a moving message in his honour three decades after they tied the knot.
In a post on Instagram, the singer added a picture from their wedding day and wrote: “You still fill our hearts, every day. You are everything for us. We miss you so much.
“Happy 30th anniversary, mon amour! Celine xx … Rene-Charles, Eddy and Nelson.”
Celine and Rene started dating in 1987 when she was 19 years old and they married in Montreal, Canada in 1994. She previously opened up about their big day in an interview with Vogue magazine insisted the wedding was totally perfect.
She said: “This is a moment that will be with me for the rest of my life. The dress couldn’t have been big enough.
“I could’ve had three times the size on my head. I could’ve had six different dresses that night because he [Rene] was, and still is, such a wonderful human being. He brought [out] the best in me. He really did.”
Rene was diagnosed with cancer four years after their wedding day and he later went into remission but the disease returned in 2014.
Celine has since been battling health issues of her own after being diagnosed with stiff-person syndrome and she recently revealed she still sees herself as “married” and even brings pictures of her late husband to her treatment sessions.
She told PEOPLE: “I’m still married to René. He’s still my husband. When we have to travel to my treatments to see my doctors, I always bring pictures [of him]. And we have pictures, of course, all over the place in the house.”
Celine also brings his pictures with her whenever she goes on a trip, adding: “My kids are always asking, ‘Did you bring Papa’s pictures?’ And I’m like, ‘Yes, I have Papa’s pictures!’ He’s their dad, and he’s my husband, and he will always be.”
Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie Make Rare Decision to Skip Christmas Celebrations at Sandringham — Here’s Why
The York sisters have rarely missed a Christmas with the royal family throughout their lives, including since marrying and welcoming children
Reports emerged on Dec. 16 that Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, Beatrice and Eugenie’s parents, will not be at the annual gathering hosted by King Charles. They will most likely spend Dec. 25 at their shared home, Royal Lodge, on the Windsor estate, where they cohabitate despite being divorced since 1996. News of the former couple’s absence at Sandringham — where they were in attendance last year, both even taking part in the annual Christmas walk to St. Mary Magdalene Church on the estate’s grounds — came amid reports of his alleged connections to a suspected Chinese spy, the latest scandal for the embattled Duke of York, 64.
Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York and Prince Andrew, Duke of York attend day four of Royal Ascot at Ascot Racecourse on June 21, 2019 in Ascot, England
Andrew and Fergie, 65, were initially expected to stay at Wood Farm on the Sandringham estate, as they did last year, but stepped back from attending amid the uproar. Ferguson’s attendance in 2023 marked her first time publicly seen at Sandringham in 30 years, since her separation from Prince Andrew in 1992, according to Tatler.
PEOPLE understands Beatrice and Eugenie each had invitations to spend Christmas with their respective in-laws, extended some time ago, and that both women decided to do so. Beatrice has been married to Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi since 2020 and is currently pregnant with her second child with him, due in early 2025; they also share daughter Sienna Elizabeth, 3, and Christopher Woolf (known affectionately as Wolfie), 8, Edo’s son from a previous relationship. Eugenie married Jack Brooksbank in 2018 and they share sons August, 3, and Ernest, 1.
The York sisters have only missed one Christmas at the country estate in Norfolk in the past decade — 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Beatrice, 36, and Eugenie, 34, have spent the holiday there for the majority of Christmases throughout their lives, dating back to when they were young girls. This year will mark the first time Beatrice and Eugenie have spent the Christmas holiday with their respective in-laws since they each married.
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The Independent reported that it was Ferguson who encouraged Prince Andrew to bow out of Sandringham Christmas, sacrificing her own invitation in the process.
“The decision for the pair to stay put at the Royal Lodge is thought to have been made easier by Princes Beatrice and Princess Eugenie’s plans to spend Christmas with their respective in-laws this year for the first time,” the outlet reported.
Princess Beatrice, Counsellor of State and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi attend the Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene Church on Dec. 25, 2023 in Sandringham, Norfolk
Related: Sarah Ferguson Says She’d Marry Prince Andrew ‘All Over Again, 100 Percent’ in Emotionally-Charged New Interview
Ferguson recently spoke to The Sunday Times about Prince Andrew, telling the outlet that, when it comes to marrying the Duke of York, she “would do it all over again, 100 percent.”
The couple married on July 23, 1986 and divorced a decade later.
“He’s the best, a great man with a great heart, and kind,” Ferguson added, saying their wedding day “was the best day of my life.”
“But I gave up my anonymity that day,” she added. “I was able to because love conquers all. It’s still with us today.”
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