Barry Gibb and Linda Gray Gibb during the 59th Grammy Awards in February 2017 in Los Angeles, California.Photo:Christopher Polk/Getty
Christopher Polk/Getty
Barry Gibb has been married to his wife, Linda Gray, for over five decades.
The Grammy-winning musician, singer and songwriter started out as a member of the iconic band theBee Geesalongside his late brothers, Robin and Maurice. Gibb and his siblings were born in England and raised in Australia, where he married his first wife, Maureen Bates, in 1966 when he was only 19. The two split soon after, according to a 2017 episode ofPiers Morgan’s Life Storiesfocused on Gibb.
When the Bee Gees relocated back to England topursue their music career, Gibb met Gray — a former Miss Edinburgh from Scotland — in 1967. The couple married three years later and went on to welcome five children.
“[Linda] is a very, very special person. She’s just so full of love and full of fun, and she has a great sense of humor,” Gibb toldPiers Morganin 2017. “We tend to laugh a lot at everything around us [more] than we could find anything to be unhappy about.”
So, who is Barry Gibb’s wife? Here’s everything to know about Linda Gray and her relationship with the singer.
They met on the set ofTop of the Pops
Barry Gibb embracing his wife Linda in July 1971.Trevor James Robert Dallen/Fairfax Media/Getty
Trevor James Robert Dallen/Fairfax Media/Getty
Gray had just won the title of Miss Edinburgh and was hosting the show the week the Bees Gees’ first hit song “Massachusetts” was No. 1 on the charts, and the band was set to perform, Gibb toldThe Sunin 2021. “We just saw each other across the room and something happened,” he said.
Gray also remembers it being as spontaneous. She recounted their meeting in a documentary clip on Gibb’s episode ofPiers Morgan’s Life Storiesin 2017. “The girls I was with, they said, ‘Oh my god, that guy is so handsome. He’s looking at you! Oh, he’s coming over,’ ” she said. “He asked me if I’d like to go for a cup of tea.”
When Morgan inquired if it was love at first sight, Gibb said, “I think it was. In my head I thought, ‘That’s the woman I’m going to spend my life with.’ ”
They married in 1970
Barry Gibb marries Linda Gray on September 1, 1970.Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty
Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty
Though Gibb and Gray have been married for over five decades, their son Ashley said their love remains just as strong. “Still, they love each other today just like they did then,” he said onPiers Morgan’s Life Storiesin 2017.
They have five children
Steve Parsons - WPA Pool/Getty
Gibb and Gray have four sons and one daughter: Stephen, Ashley, Travis, Michael and Alexandra. Three years after the pair married, they welcomed their first child, Stephen, in 1973, and celebrated the arrival of their last child, Alexandra, in 1991.
“[Our family has] really flowered. The family has grown and grown and we all know each other and love each other and I’ve got some of the most beautiful women in the world in my family,” Gibb told the outlet.
She encouraged him to restart his career
Barry Gibb and Linda Gray attend “Stayin' Alive: A GRAMMY Salute To The Music Of The Bee Gees” on February 14, 2017 in Los Angeles, California.Kevin Mazur/WireImage
Kevin Mazur/WireImage
“I was ready to quit. I was done. There was no point in going on any further,” he said. “She came [into the room one night], and she said, ‘You’ve got to get off your a–. You still have your own life. You’ve got to live.’ ”
Gray encouraged Gibb to get out of the house and get onstage again, he toldTIMEin 2014. That same year, Gibb went on hisfirst solo tourwith his son Stephen and his niece Samantha (Maurice’s daughter).
He told TIME that touring with family was “instinctive. We all want to play together. It’s a treat to have Steve standing next to me and Sammy singing.”
In 2016, Gibb released his first-ever solo album titledIn the Now.His sons Stephen and Ashley were his cowriters, according toBillboard.
“The album is my opinion of life,” Gibb explained to the outlet. “My feelings and my journey with my brothers, and without my brothers, with my parents and without my parents, and with my own family, seeing my kids have their own kids.”
She always supported his health and wellbeing
Barry Gibb and Linda Gibb attend the Nordoff Robbins O2 Silver Clef Awards at the London Hilton on June 28, 2013 in London, England.Dave M. Benett/Getty
Dave M. Benett/Getty
Gibb’s youngest brotherAndy Gibb died in 1988after struggling with alcohol and drug addiction and failing health. Gibb toldThe Guardianin 2020 that he witnessed how ultra levels of fame can impact a person, but he credits Gray for saving him from the addiction and overindulgence that befell all three of his brothers.
“My brothers had to deal with their demons, but I was married to a lady who wasn’t going to have it,” Gibb toldThe Guardian. “She never allowed me to go in that direction. I had to deal with my brothers being pretty much out there, but I was lucky.”
They live in Miami
Barry Gibb and Linda Gray attend Pre-GRAMMY Gala and Salute to Industry Icons Honoring Debra Lee at The Beverly Hilton on February 11, 2017 in Los Angeles, California.Lester Cohen/WireImage
Lester Cohen/WireImage
One year after they welcomed their first child, Gibb and Gray moved from England to Miami, Florida, along with the entire family, according toThe Guardian. Gibb told the outlet in 2020 that he liked Miami because it reminded him of Australia, where he grew up.
The band moved to Miami in 1974 at the suggestion of English rock singerEric Clapton, who believed that while the Bee Gees' career was stagnant, a change of location might be beneficial. The brothers moved into Clapton’s former home, where he wrote the album461 Ocean Boulevardafter the house’s address.
Gibb and Gray still live there today, in a waterfront mansion in an exclusive country club, though they still have a home in England as well.
source: people.com
