Forty-two per cent of married couples in the UK are expected to divorce, yet the cultural ideal of one true love persists. For some, however, multiple marriages become a pattern. From Elizabeth Taylor’s eight weddings to Henry VIII’s six wives, serial marriage often carries a mix of glamour and madness. But what drives ordinary people to keep saying ‘I do’?
Anita, married six times, first walked down the aisle at 18 out of fear of being seen as unworthy without a husband. After her first marriage ended, she remarried repeatedly because being a divorced woman in her European hometown meant social ostracism. For many women, marriage remains a crowning achievement, despite research suggesting single women are often happier and healthier.
Carys, a 73-year-old American divorce attorney on her eighth marriage, sees marriage partly as a financial proposition. Having filed six of her own divorces, she keeps the paperwork ready as a ‘security blanket’. She explains that marriage provides financial and emotional safety, especially when things go wrong. For her, the romantic ideal of ‘until death do us part’ is less important than practical benefits.
The state also incentivises marriage: UK couples get tax breaks, and in the US, spouses can share medical insurance. This practical side, combined with deep-seated romantic hopes, creates a powerful pull. Serial spouses often believe the next marriage might save them, even while knowing it probably won’t. Their stories reveal a strange blend of romanticism and realism about love.
