Shirley Conran ends 13-year feud with son Jasper at his gay wedding  | Daily Mail Online
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Christmas is a time of goodwill to all men, and designer Jasper Conran has decided he should end his 13-year feud with his mother, the bestselling author Shirley Conran.
Shirley, 83, whose works include Superwoman and Lace, said last year that Jasper had not spoken a word to her since 2002 and that she did not know why.
Now, however, the ex-wife of Habitat founder and restaurateur Sir Terence Conran tells me Jasper invited her to his wedding on Saturday, and she happily accepted the invitation. It was also Jasper’s 56th birthday.
Designer Jasper Conran and Oisin Byrne on their wedding day, where Jasper also managed to end his 13-year feud with his mother, the author Shirley Conran
‘I was there,’ she tells me of the ceremony at Wardour Castle in Wiltshire, where Jasper tied the knot with Oisin Byrne, an Irish artist 24 years his junior. ‘It was a very splendid wedding and a very enjoyable day, but I don’t want to say any more about it.’
Her caution is understandable. Jasper is thought to have cut her out of his life after taking offence at some remark she made.
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Shirley, who once observed that life is too short to stuff a mushroom, told me last year she feared she would die without speaking to Jasper again. 
She has suffered from skin cancer and ME in the past. ‘I’m sad,’ she said. ‘I want to make up with Jasper before I die and, when I do, I will take out a full-page ad in The Times to tell everyone.’
She and Sir Terence divorced when Jasper was two years old, and he has spoken of his unhappy childhood. He married an American woman, Jeannie Spaziani, when they were both design students in New York.
Designer Jasper Conran with his parents, Shirley Conran and restaurateur Sir Terence, at the launch of one of Shirley's books
Jasper is thought to have cut her out of his life after taking offence at some remark she made. Pictured, Shirley Conran, with Jasper and Sebastian Conran
He divorced three years later and then became openly gay, having long affairs with the late travel writer Bruce Chatwin and fashion designer John Galliano. 
Sir Terence once said: ‘When Jasper was only three, some gay friends of mine told me: “Jasper is going to be gay.” I think people are born this way.’
Jasper told me of his ‘utter shock’ when Sir Terence, who has three other children, handed him total control of his empire last year. ‘It came out of the blue,’ said Jasper. ‘He chose me out of all his other children.’