Three months after begging a judge to “let me have my life back”, Britney Spears excitedly announced her engagement to long-term boyfriend Sam Asghari last week.
Showing off her giant £50k four-carat sparkler – engraved with her nickname, “lioness”, in a nod to her courage amid her recent battle to end her 13- year “abusive” conservatorship – Britney, 39, wrote on Instagram, “I can’t f--king believe it!” before adding it was “long overdue”.
The announcement came just weeks after the star’s dad, Jamie Spears, filed a petition to step down from his role as her conservator – that he took on after her tragic 2007 breakdown – which controlled many aspects of her life, including reportedly stopping her from getting married and having a baby.
Jamie cannot be officially removed until receiving approval from a judge at the end of the month. However, Britney is determined to celebrate her upcoming nuptials at a joint “freedom party” in December.
And insiders tell Closer that she is planning to pull out all the stops for the bash, which will see her two teenage sons walk her down the aisle in an emotional ceremony.
A source says, “They’re hoping to tie the knot in December, which is Britney’s 40th birthday. They’re praying the conservatorship will have been lifted by then, so they can have a triple celebration.
“Britney has been to hell and back the past 13 years but, after living like a virtual prisoner, she finally has a taste of freedom and wants to celebrate that with a lavish two-week party.
“It’ll be no expense spared – she wants to splash her hard-earned money, which is only natural considering she’s been prevented from doing so for over a decade.
“Brit and Sam fell in love with Maui [in Hawaii] during their recent holiday there, so they’re due to jet back later this month to scout wedding venues, which could set them back at least £250,000.
“They’ll also fly all their friends and some family members out on private jets, which could cost another £250,000 given many of Sam’s family will be flying from his native Iran.
“They’d love to hire [opera singer] Andrea Bocelli to sing at the event. His fee is around £500,000 on top of the actual party itself, while Vera Wang – who’s publicly supported Britney amid her battle – has already been in touch to offer to design her dress, which could cost up to £100,000. The whole thing will be very expensive – but beautiful.”
Many of the Toxic singer’s A-list pals were quick to offer their congratulations following her happy announcement.
The nuptials are likely to be a star-studded affair, with Britney expected to invite a host of pals who have supported her, including friends Paris Hilton, Miley Cyrus, Elton John, Adele and Beyoncé.
The source says, “Brit’s been overwhelmed by the loyalty many of her celeb friends have shown – particularly during her battle over the last few months – and she wants to show her appreciation and give them a chance to celebrate with her so she can prove how important their support has been to her.”
However, her big day will be bittersweet due to the public fall-out with her immediate family in recent months, with insiders telling Closer that her dad and sister, Jamie Lynne, 30, are likely to be snubbed.
Following her bombshell testimony in June, Britney appeared to hit back at Jamie Lynne following an Instagram post showing what appeared to be support for her big sister.
But Britney replied with a scathing image that read, “Kiss my a* _and eat sh_t”, writing underneath, “My so-called support system hurt me deeply. I don’t like that my sister showed up at an awards show and performed MY SONGS to remixes!”
And pals say Britney – whose mum, Lynne, 66, divorced Britney’s dad in 2002 and has been accused of “exploiting” her daughter’s “pain and trauma” for her own personal profit – is also likely to be banned.
The source says, “Brit and Sam want to be surrounded by their loved ones, but it will be tinged with sadness given Britney’s immediate family will be absent. She had an extremely close bond with her family growing up, so to marry the love of her life without them by her side will be difficult – but sadly inevitable, after what has happened.”
Check out: 11 reality stars who dated A-list celebs
Reality stars who dated A-listers - slider
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1 of 11Chris Hughes and Jesy Nelson
Jesy and Chris began dating in secret back in November 2018 and soon moved in with each other. They both appeared on each others' documentaries and we hoped this relationship could last forever but sadly they split in March 2020. They are apparently still 'good friends' though... We'll see how long that lasts.
2 of 11Paige Turley and Lewis Capaldi
Before Paige shot to fame on Love Island with her current boyfriend Finn Tapp, and Lewis was yet to have a number one single, the pair actually dated for a year in their late teens after meeting at college.
3 of 11Sinitta and Brad Pitt
During his years in Hollywood, Brad Pitt has dated his fair share of high profile women including Jennifer Aniston, Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie but what you may not know is that he actually had a two year relationship with TV personality and singer Sinitta. When they first got together, Brad was nothing more than a jobbing actor in LA whilst she toured the world performing. Eventually however, long-distance broke them up.
4 of 11Charlie King and Sam Smith
Imagine counting both Gemma Collins and Sam Smith among your exes? ICONIC. Well, that's what former TOWIE star Charlie King can say. Charlie and Sam apparently met on social media back in 2015 in enjoyed a few secret dates together before they decided to just be friends.
5 of 11Calum Best and Lindsday Lohan
Back in 2007 Lindsay and Calum had a tumultuous relationship that often hit the headlines. They apparently broke up after Lindsay caught the reality star lothario in bed with another woman.
6 of 11Kate Wright and Rio Ferdinand
She may be Mrs Ferdinand now, but back when she met her footballer husband Kate Wright was best known for getting the run around from then-boyfriend Dan Edgar on TOWIE. Kate had just split from Dan when she met Rio and the rest, they say, is history. The genetically-blessed pair married in Turkey in 2018 and welcomed baby boy Cree in December 2020.
7 of 11Samira Mighty and Chris Pine
These two met at a GQ Man of the Year afterparty in 2018 when they swapped numbers and Chris asked Samira out on a date. WHAT? Chris seemed keen to continue the relationship but Samira had to turn him down because she was appearing on Love Island. Obsessed.
8 of 11Stephanie Davies and Zayn Malik
Hollyoaks and CBB star Stephanie actually dated for five months in 2010 before Zayn moved on with fellow X-Factor star Perrie Edwards. Incidentally Perrie and Zayn's relationship was plagued by cheating rumours including with Love Island's Lauren Richardson.
9 of 11Louise Thompson and Niall Horan
Made in Chelsea's Louise Thompson experienced her fair share of heartbreak during her tumultuous relationship with SW3's resident bad boy Spencer Matthews, but she ended up doing the dirty on her next boyfriend Andy Jordan. It was later reported that Louise's other man was none other than One Direction star Niall Horan.
10 of 11Kim Kardashian and Kayne West
In fairness we would definitely call Kim Kardashian an A-Lister as well but technically she is also a reality star. Kim and Kanye met in 2003 but, after her two failed marriages, they confirmed that they were finally an item in 2012. Unfortunately, after a six year marriage and four ADORABLE kids, the two decided to call it quits January 2021.
11 of 11Chad Johnson and Sarah Harding
Girls Aloud's Sarah Harding met The Bachelorette star Chad Johnson on Celebrity Big Brother back in 2017 but after a whirlwind three months together, long-distance and Chad's cheating ways broke them up.
While the former child star is expected to invite her older brother, Bryan, 44, pals say she has asked her sons, Sean Preston, 16, and Jayden James, 15, to give her away.
In 2016, Britney was granted partial custody of her two sons with ex Kevin Federline, 43, after losing full custody following her breakdown.
The source says, “Britney has already asked the boys to walk her down the aisle. They’re the most important people in her life and they adore Sam, so they’re incredibly honoured to be able to be by her side.”
And amid the ongoing battle to regain control of her life and fortune, Sam responded to concerned fans urging the wealthy singer to enforce a pre-nuptial agreement to protect her £45m fortune.
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In a tongue-in-cheek Instagram comment, the fitness trainer-turned-actor said, “Thank you everyone who is concerned about the prenup! Of course we’re getting an iron-clad prenup to protect my jeep and shoe collection in case she dumps me one day,” alongside some laughing emojis.
And insiders say that, while Britney will likely impose a prenup, she doesn’t want their happy news to be overshadowed by formal legalities.
The source adds, “While Brit understands and appreciates her fans’ concern and knows they just want to protect her, she was upset by all the talk of money and doesn’t want this special time being tarnished by talk of finances – something that has controlled her life for so many years.
“Britney and Sam are on cloud nine and are determined to enjoy every moment now they can finally start planning their future together.
“She hopes it won’t be long before they can start trying for a much-longed-for baby and finally get their happily ever after.”