The layers to Adam Peaty’s family feud have deepened thanks to a social media post shared by his estranged brother.
Yesterday, the Olympic swimmer, 30, married Holly Ramsay, 25 – model and daughter of Gordon Ramsay – but the lead-up to their big day was anything but blissful.
Instead, it was marred by drama, with Adam’s mother reportedly banned from attending the ceremony, while Holly’s childhood pal Brooklyn Beckham also gave it a swerve.
Now, Adam’s brother, James, has taken to Instagram with a pointed post after being struck off the guest list himself.
On his Story the day after the wedding, James shared an old photo of himself and mum Caroline standing outside Bath Abbey, where Adam and Holly said ‘I do.’
He wrote ‘Merry Christmas’ in a cursive font alongside it, adding a song that could’ve had a dark, hidden meaning.
His song of choice was a remix of Speak Softly, Love, which is featured in 1972 movie The Godfather.
The iconic crime film, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, is part of a trilogy and tells the story of the Corleone family, where patriarch Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando) hands over his empire to his youngest son.
Michael (Al Pacino) joins the Mafia reluctantly as an outsider, all while trying to maintain a normal relationship with his wife, Kay (Diane Keaton).
This has led to speculation that James could be comparing the Ramsay family to the Corleones, of which Adam is the ‘outsider’ from a different walk of life.
As per the Daily Mail, the picture was only up for 15 minutes before being deleted, suggesting James might have had a change of heart about acting hastily.
It was the only post visible on his account for that time period, as he has wiped his feed of all images.
Adam and James’s relationship hit headlines after the athlete returned from his stag do in Budapest, with father-in-law Gordon in attendance.
Upon landing at Manchester Airport, Adam was escorted from the plane by police after he had received threats.
James was subsequently arrested and released on bail, having allegedly sent Adam verbal threats, which prompted authorities to intervene.
At the time, a police statement confirmed that a 34-year-old man had been arrested ‘on suspicion of harassment’.
‘The man was released on conditional bail while our enquiries continue,’ they added.
Sources later claimed that ‘Adam sees his mum to be enabling his brother’s actions’, only furthering the distance between them.
The gold medallist has not publicly addressed the situation with James, writing in a social media statement in November that he, Holly, and sister Bethany ‘cannot go into detail given an ongoing police investigation into serious matters that arose long before recent events’.
While Adam is seemingly only now close with Bethany from his immediate family, his father, Mark, reportedly attended his wedding.
In stark contrast to Bethany acting as a bridesmaid alongside Holly’s sister Tilly, Mark was reportedly told he’d have to sit at the back ‘behind the plus ones’, although he was not photographed.
He was then seen out walking his dog the day after the celebrations, cutting a glum figure outside the family home in Staffordshire.
Initially, Adam’s mother was planning to crash the wedding day, vowing to ‘watch from the street’, but she later stood down, with reports claiming husband Mark convinced her she’d be ‘too upset’ by doing so.
A family member added to The Sun that Caroline had accepted ‘it would be too sad, and she doesn’t want to spoil his big day’.
Adam Peaty and Holly Ramsay’s relationship timeline
2021 – Holly and Adam meet on Strictly Come Dancing while he’s competing on the show
2022 – Adam splits from girlfriend Eirianedd Munro, with whom he has a son
2023 – Holly and Adam confirm their relationship while on holiday in Rome
2024 – Adam credits Holly’s dad, Gordon, for helping him through difficult times in his life and career
2024 – Holly and Adam get engaged
2025 – Holly celebrates her hen do at Soho Farmhouse while Adam heads to Budapest for his stag
2025 – Holly and Adam marry on December 27 in Bath Abbey
Nevertheless, Caroline was ‘beside herself’ after missing her son’s wedding, having confessed to the Daily Mail that she felt as if Holly and Adam ‘had cut my heart out’.
It was also claimed that Adam’s aunt, Louise, who was also not invited to the wedding, told the sportsman over text before he tied the knot: ‘I hope you never suffer the depth of pain you have put your mother through and despite it all she loves you still. Shame on you both. Shame.
‘Remember on this, your happiest day, and on each anniversary of your happiest day, that you hurt your mum so deeply her soul screams.’
It’s been said that Adam’s relationship with his parents is now at an ‘all-time low’, but he has been warmly accepted into the Ramsay family by in-laws Gordon and Tana.
Voicing his approval for his daughter’s choice of husband ahead of the ceremony, celebrity chef Gordon took to Instagram with a supportive message.
‘I’m truly so lucky being able to walk this beautiful bride down the aisle and gaining an incredible son in law @adam_peaty !’, he wrote.
‘I love you so much @hollyramsayy and couldn’t be a prouder Dad xxx’
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