Mystery surrounds Aussie music exec's sudden gay marriage-- followed by his sudden death

We told you last week about the services for Aussie music exec Peter Ikin, a good pal of Tabloid Baby pal Linn Taylor in Sydney and lots of others in the music biz Down Under.

As it turns out, the untimely death of the bon vivant and founder of Warner Music Australia was not without controversy! His death in Paris was a "Death in Venice" kind of thing, and mysterious, to boot-- possibly up there with Johnny O'Keefe's Elvis demise and Michael Hutchence's auto-erotic hanging!

And what was a fond farewell is turning ugly its aftermath, with questions about how he died, why his body was cremated so quickly, and what's going on with the will and properties he left behind.

Aussie gossip queen Annette Sharp writes in the Daily Telegraph:

"...At Monday's service at St Canice's in Elizabeth Bay, the mystery surrounding the final weeks of his life as well as the circumstances of his death dominated conversation.

"Some thought 'PI' had died suddenly of cancer, some believed he had fallen down a flight a stairs fatally injuring his head, while others were trying to piece together the final days of his life in Paris hotel room, far from his luxury Chelsea home.

"Ikin's Sydney-based nephew Father Gary Perritt confirmed that an autopsy had been conducted in Paris soon after his death. He was cremated within the week.

"Ikin died of a heart attack Fr Perritt said. Ikin's solicitor Peter Court said the death certificate had not yet arrived from Paris confirming the cause of Ikin's death. That could take some weeks, he added.

"Meanwhile, distressed friends are intrigued by Ikin's decision to marry his younger French boyfriend only a few weeks before his death.

"Alexandre Despallieres is listed on the web as president of Lexink, Creative Minds for the Multimedia Industry. The bizarre site lists Despallieres' favourite books, websites and computer widgets. Some 20 years after first meeting and enjoying a brief affair, Despallieres traced Ikin to Sydney earlier this year.

"The couple left Sydney soon after reuniting to travel the world together - it was the last time Ikin would be seen in Sydney.

"Ikin, a rather wealthy man at the time of his death, married Despallieres in a civil ceremony in the UK just a couple of weeks before his death. Yet, Australian friends knew little of the marriage and were distressed when Despallieres reportedly tried to deny them a memorial service in Sydney this week.

"...As the founder of Warner Music Australia, Ikin was revered locally and adored internationally by artists Elton John, Billy Joel, Rod Stewart and Fleetwood Mac.

"Yesterday Rix maintained that Ikin's death resulted from a fall down a set of stairs in Paris."

In any case, PI's gone too soon, but he'd probably love the gossip...

Stay tuned..