A gay couple whose online coming-out went viral in China have held a wedding ceremony in Beijing, only for it to be interrupted by the son of the elder man.

The couple, who are known by the pet names “big treasure” and “little treasure”, and who post on microblogging site Weibo under the tag “Two Old Men Love” (两个老头的爱情), broadcast footage of their wedding on streaming site 6Rooms. Although China does not recognise same-sex marriage, they invited 25 of the friends they had made online to attend a symbolic ceremony.

However, the couple had to cut the broadcast short when “big treasure”‘s son interrupted the proceedings.

Global Times reports that they told the executive director of Parents, Friends, and Families of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) China: “We feel so upset and disgraced because the ceremony was interrupted by the son. He even beat the guests away. We are too upset to accept any interviews.”

A user on the China Daily forum reported that the couple had said: “The wedding went well until my bastard son disrupted, he kicked over tables, chased away all the guests and humiliated us. A lot of friends online from Weibo and QQ who support us felt sad about it, all the broadcasting had to stop.”

“It’s disappointing that outsiders can bless us but not our own son. The heartless child is sabotaging our happiness,” they wrote on their blog.

Wu Zhiqiang, the media officer for 6Rooms, said the couple had applied several times to stream footage of their wedding.

“We think we shouldn’t forbid them because of controversial content, which would violate the Internet’s open policy,” said Mr Wu.

The pair caught the public’s eye after they uploaded a video of themselves on Weibo, in which they performed a karaoke duet. The page attracted some 12,000 fans.

The couple say they met in Beijing when the younger of the two delivered water to the house of the elder, a retired teacher.

“I got him an army coat for when it’s cold and he sent me several bottles of water for free. I’m rich and he’s a migrant worker. But I love him and he loves me,” said the elder on his blog.

“There are different kinds of love in the world. You shouldn’t oppose us. Don’t stick to the old rules,”

They decided to come out after being inspired by the Big Love pro-LGBT campaign in Hong Kong.