Joe Elliott has gained a huge number of fans as Def Leppard’s lead singer. However, he has also been married behind the scenes and has two children with his current wife. While his more domestic set up now is of interest to fans, many really want to know who his first wife was.
Who is Joe Elliott’s first wife?
Joe’s first wife is Irish socialite and model Karla Ramdhani, who he married in 1989.
However, before he settled down, Joe has spoken out about how he loved to “sew his wild oats” in the height of their fame.
Speaking in 1995, Joe said: “Basically I just wanted to play music and s*** women.
“That’s the reason you get into a band, isn’t it?
“When we first went to America in 1980 we hadn’t a clue what was going on.
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“All these groupies started making moves on us. Yes, we certainly took advantage of it and all sowed our wild oats.
“We had a great time. It was much safer back then than it is now, with the results that there are no real groupies left anymore.
“Not in Britain or Ireland anyhow. In fact, I’ve never been propositioned over here.”
However, clearly love was on his mind, as eventually the groupies obsessing over him grew tiresome.
He continued: “It got really boring after a while. It was just too easy. Women throwing themselves at you every night.
“Nowadays we just get kids who are real fans hanging around the backstage doors looking for autographs, and I’m very happy with that.”
He met model Karla met in a Dublin nightclub in 1982 and the pair were soon inseparable.
They married in 1989 and quickly became a well-known pair, attending concerts, premieres and charity fund-raisers together.
Karla quit modelling soon after they tied the knot to move into their home together in the Dublin mountains.
But cracks began to show and after seven years, the couple divorced in 1996, and Joe continued his life with the band while Karla started up a beauty business.
According to The Mirror, they began to drift apart after he spent so much time on the road, and while Karla often flew out to join them, it was not enough.
Joe said of the divorce: “Getting divorced is hurtful and I hope it doesn’t make myself and Karla bitter.
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“It takes time and you’ve got to be realistic about it. It will probably be more painful if I was back in Dublin watching it all happen before my eyes.
“I’m away from it, but I’m still involved in my head.”
Karla has since been engaged twice, first to nightclub security boss Dave Walsh, who she had a daughter with, and later to Michelin star chef Conrad Gallagher. She is not currently believed to be married.
A few years after his divorce, Joe met Kristine Wunschel, a crew member for Def Leppard’s X album tour.
The pair met in 2003 and on September 1, 2004, the couple married.
Despite not having had any children from his previous marriage, Joe embarked on fatherhood with his second wife, and the couple had their son, Finlay, in December 2009.
Speaking about his domestic life in the Irish Independent, Joe revealed he had slowed down a great deal since becoming a father.
In an interview published in 2011, Joe said: “Sure, I’ve changed nappies from the very beginning without giving it a second thought. I’m very hands on with my son.
“We get on very well, talking this strange language to each other. It’s brilliant. And since he was born I haven’t been away long enough for him to forget who I am.
“From the time he came home from the hospital, myself and my wife split-shifted all the work.
“We’d each take every second night to get up and change him and give him a new bottle. We each had roles to play.
“It was always that way from the very beginning. It was great to be at home for it.”
Joe took a sabbatical, along with the band, for one year when his son was born, showing his dedication to his family.
In 2016, the couple had their second child, Lyla.
