SHORT TAKES : Lloyd Webber Marries Secretly

LONDON —  Andrew Lloyd Webber, composer of “Cats,” “Phantom of the Opera” and “Aspects of Love,” secretly married Madeleine Gurdon days before their planned church wedding.

The couple were married in a private ceremony at Westminster Register Office in London, a spokesman for the composer said Wednesday.

No date for the ceremony was announced, but the spokesman said it was held “several days ago and only a few very close relatives were in attendance.”

Lloyd Webber, 42, and Gurdon, a 27-year-old equestrienne, had planned to marry Saturday. Heavy media coverage had been expected. The composer’s divorce from actress Sarah Brightman, 30, who starred in his shows, has been a popular tabloid topic.