Adelaide workplace romances: From Graham Cornes to Dev Patel and Tilda Cobham-Hervey, Rosanna Mangiarelli and Rebecca Morse
Some of Adelaide’s biggest names found their better half in the workplace – from the newsroom to the kitchen and a movie set. See how nine love matches first met.
Lifestyle
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The office romance is a tale as old as time.
And like many others, some of Adelaide’s biggest names have found their better half in the workplace, whether that may be a newsroom, kitchen, movie set or in the sporting arena.
Here are some of South Australia’s most notable love matches and how they first met while they were busy at the office.
ROSANNA MANGIARELLI AND ANDREW OBORN
When 7NEWS Adelaide co-presenter Rosanna and her husband, Andrew, got together in the 1990s it was a case of – like the title of the Paula Abdul hit of that era – opposites attract.
“My husband was my camera operator in my first job as a journo at Central Television in Port Pirie,” Rosanna told The Advertiser, adding she thought he was a “country bumpkin”, while he saw her as a “city slicker”.
“We were both wrong and these days we laugh about it.”
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Married since 2002, Rosanna and Andrew, who is the production co-ordinator at Channel 10, are parents to three children – Emma, Olivia and William.
“Andrew is the CEO (of the home) and I’m the general manager,” Rosanna has said.
GRAHAM AND NICOLE CORNES
Graham was a FIVEaa media personality, SANFL footy legend – and high-profile Crows coach – when he first crossed paths with 21-year-old Nicole Peterson at the Adelaide radio station in 1991.
But Nicole, who was working as a receptionist at FIVEaa at the time, wasn’t exactly starstruck when she met Cornes, 22 years her senior.
“I didn’t know who he was,” she told The Advertiser in a 2009 feature story.
“I used to confuse him with John Farnham when I was little. It was the blond hair. My Nanna loved Graham Cornes so much – she was a Bays supporter – she named her dog Cornesy.”
It didn’t take long for the pair to fall in love, with Nicole later revealing: “I knew within two months of being with him that he was the man I wanted to be with forever.”
The happy couple tied the knot two years later in October, 1993, at Prince Alfred College chapel and they have three beautiful daughters together, Amy (born in 1994), Charlize (2004) and Gia (2009).
REBECCA “BEC” MORSE AND JAMES WAKELIN
Okay, so these two didn’t exactly meet at work – but they were employed in the same industry for rival networks which makes it super romantic in a Romeo and Juliet kind of way.
Bec and James met when they were introduced to one another at the Austral Hotel on Rundle Street in 1999.
When they tied the knot in 2005 she was an ABC reporter and newsreader and he was a Channel 9.
Fast forward to 2024, and Bec is now co-hosting brekky on SAFM, while James is now a reporter and producer with the ABC.
Darwin before settling back in Adelaide. The couple have three daughters Grace, Milla and Frankie.
BEC AND LLEYTON HEWITT
No, they didn’t work together but they met through work in 1999 at a Starlight Children’s Foundation tennis charity day in Sydney.
Did sparks fly? Who knows, but if they did it was a helluva slow burn. Home and Away soapie star Bec and West Lakes tennis ace Lleyton – a former world No. 1 – didn’t have their first date until 2004 when they rocked up together to a party hosted by Virgin boss Richard Branson in Sydney.
Two decades on they are still happily married – they tied the knot at Sydney Opera House in 2005 – and have three children, Mia, Cruz and Ava.
JODIE AND GREG ODDY
When these two first got together while working for Mix 102.3 it was one of Adelaide’s worst-kept secrets.
They both had profiles – she was the brekky co-host of a top-rating brekky show and he was the captain of Adelaide Adrenaline ice hockey team (as well as a day job at Mix in sales).
At the time – in 2008 – The Advertiser couldn’t resist asking Jodie about the romance rumour which she was quick to quash.
But in 2011 she and Greg wed in Bali and went on to become parents to Payton, Summer and Harper, who are sisters to Taylor, the daughter Jodie shares with former husband ex cricketer and now Triple M Rush Hour name Greg Blewett.
Jodie is now presenting the Jodie & Hayesy Breakfast Show with Andrew Hayes on Nova 919.
And, showing what a good sport she is, The Advertiser rumour snippet recently popped up on social media on a jodieandhaysey account with the caption: “nek minnit, married 13 years and 3 children”.
LAURA AND MAX SHARRAD
It’s been quite a ride for Adelaide’s first couple of food, Laura and Max.
The pair’s romance began in the kitchen of Jock Zonfrillo’s award-winning Orana restaurant in 2015, where Laura was working as a pastry chef following a runner-up finish in MasterChef.
Rising star Max was the acclaimed eatery’s junior sous chef and the rest is history.
“I knew from day one. I could just tell, it was love at first sight,” Max told The Adelaide Advertiser. “That is where the attraction first happened.”
Fast forward two years later and they became engaged in Tuscany, Italy, during a European holiday in 2017, typing the knot the following year.
The couple, who are behind top local eateries Fugazzi Bar & Dining Room and Nido, welcomed their first child in April, a baby girl called Florence Rosa.
“She’s honestly so perfect and such an angel,” Laura said.
KYLE CHALMERS AND INGEBORG LØYNING
The Adelaide superfish and the Norwegian backstroker met in swimming circles almost two years ago, but kept their romance under wraps until May, when they shared a shot of themselves together, poolside in Queensland.
Six weeks later, the happy couple revealed on social media that they were engaged, posting a series of photos of themselves with Løyning showing off a diamond ring.
The caption to the photos post the date 19.06.24 alongside the “infinity” symbol.
Loyning said in December the athletes had been dating for about a year and the couple now lives and trains together in Adelaide.
Chalmers, who shot to fame after winning gold as an 18-year-old at the 2016 Rio Olympics, will compete at the Paris Games in his pet 100m freestyle event.
DEV PATEL AND TILDA COBHAM-HERVEY
Love blossomed between the Hollywood star and Adelaide actor on the set of their 2016 movie, Hotel Mumbai, much of which was shot on location around SA.
Tilda was a late addition to the cast, playing a nanny after another Adelaide actor, Teresa Palmer, fell pregnant and dropped out.
Cobham-Hervey showed Patel around the city during filming and introduced him to his favourite Adelaide restaurant, Jasmin.
They started dating soon after and were later photographed hand-in-hand and smooching in public, but have largely kept their relationship away from prying eyes.
That all changed in April at the Hollywood premiere of Dev’s new movie, Monkey Man, when the photogenic couple walked the red carpet together for the first time.
These days Tilda and Dev are largely based in Los Angeles, but he loves spending time in her hometown of Adelaide. They were recently spotted at the Illuminate Adelaide winter festival.
JAMES STEVENS AND ALEX MAY
A passion for the Liberal Party brought together Alex, the Liberal Party state director, and James, the Sturt MP.
The couple are longtime members of the Liberal ranks either as Young Liberals, staffers, campaigners or party members.
For a time, James was chief of staff for then Premier Steven Marshall and Alex was deputy chief of staff.
James, 40, who replaced Christopher Pyne as Sturt MP at the 2019 federal election, was Young Liberal state president from 2004 to 2006 and the president of Mr Marshall’s state electorate council from 2012-16.
Alex has also worked as a staffer and policy adviser for Alexander Downer, Jamie Briggs and Isobel Redmond.
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