Sophie Monk and Joshua Gross wed in secret last month
After keeping the nation up-to-date with her dating woes for years, Sophie Monk has done the unthinkable and wed in complete secrecy.
Australia’s favourite bachelorette is a bachelorette no more.
It turns out beloved TV personality Sophie Monk has already tied the knot in a shroud of secrecy, wedding fiance Joshua Gross in an at-home ceremony last month and managing to keep things hush-hush for weeks.
In an exclusive interview with Stellar, Sophie — who delighted fans with her engagement news in January last year — said the decision to keep things intimate was a no-brainer.
“We always thought we’d elope.
“So many people said to me, ‘I didn’t even see my husband on the night; if I had my wedding over, we’d just elope’. So we thought, well, why don’t we just get married at home? I’ve seen people get really stressed about their wedding and ours has been so stress-free.”
READ MORE: See more pictures from Sophie’s big day
Stripping things way back, the wedding was an intimate at-home dinner with just two guests: Sophie and Josh. No family or friends were present, which Sophie explained wasn’t a big deal.
“I’m 42, so I feel like (our loved ones) are like, OK, do it your way. We figured if we don’t invite one person, then no-one could get upset.”
The stunning yet delightfully down-to-earth star wore two dresses by Melbourne-based designers J’Aton couture, admitting she didn’t even try them on until the day.
“It fit like a glove, it was perfect – it was just how I’d imagined it,” she said of the dress worn during the ceremony.
“We didn’t give them long [to design it], but they’re pros. I sketched it out a couple of weeks ago with my stylist. I wanted to just keep it simple, beautiful and timeless, but still “bride”.
Sophie added that she opted to have an outfit change with a second gown, just to switch things up from her usual look.
“Honestly, I wear uggies and trackpants every day; that’s my style,” she joked.
How the couple met
In a meet-cute tale fit for a movie script, the couple first met on a flight from Europe to Australia in August 2018, sharing a mid-air pash after enjoying “three champagnes” in business class.
As the story goes, Sophie and Josh got chatting, and after sharing a bottle the reality star plucked up the courage to ask him for a kiss.
Telling the story on KIIS FM’s Kyle and Jackie O show, Sophie said: “I was sitting there for a while and I went, ‘Hey, um, are you single?’ And he went, ‘Yeah.’ I went, ‘I don’t ever get to meet people in normal scenarios and, um, can I kiss you?’… I thought, ‘Oh god I’ve got a 10-hour flight with this guy, if he says no I’m in trouble,’” Sophie joked.
She added to news.com.au that she even brushed her teeth before the kiss.
“We went to separate bathrooms and brushed our teeth,” she recalled.
Later, she told 9Honey of her first impressions of Josh: “I just sat down, and he had a sense of humour, and I was like, ‘Oh, how relieving, sitting next to someone you can have a chat with’”.
While Sophie kept the relationship under-wraps to start with, she shared the first of many photos of them together on Instagram Story in November 2018.
“So lucky to have this guy in my life to help me recover,” she wrote accompanying a photo of her in hospital undergoing surgery for her endometriosis.
Fast-forward three years and a global pandemic, the pair were engaged in January 2021.
“Told you I’d tell you guys first … I’m engaged,” she wrote.
“I honestly can’t thank you enough for all the love and support. I know I have the coolest people following me, and you’ve always had my back, and I feel so cared about. You’re absolute bloody legends. I’m not very good at being mushy. I’m trying to say I absolutely adore you.”
The couple hosted an at-home engagement party in April last year with friends and family.
Monk’s relationship history
Before she was the Bachelorette, Sophie was linked to a few Hollywood stars including Jason Statham, Kevin Connolly and Ryan Seacrest.
The Love Island host also had an on-off two-year relationship with ex-NRL player Eric Grothe Jr, and was linked to Sam Worthington in 2017 before he met Lara Worthington.
She has also been engaged twice before, to French businessman Jimmy Esebag back in January 2011, and Benji Madden in 2007.
Of course, her last major relationship played out in prime time …
Stu Laundy and The Bachelorette
Sophie’s memorable 2017 stint as The Bachelorette ended with the blonde beauty choosing millionaire publican Stu Laundy as the recipient of her final rose.
But soon after, the relationship unravelled.
Six months after filming the finale in January 2018, Sophie took to Instagram with an emotional late-night post saying she gave the relationship her “best shot” but it “just didn’t work out” because the two were “very different people”.
She credited her desire to have children as the main reason they parted ways.
“I went into this experience looking to settle down and start a family. I gave it the best shot I could, and my intentions were everything I said I was looking for, but unfortunately, it just didn't work out,” wrote Sophie.
The couple’s thoughts having on kids
Sophie has long been candid about her hopes to be a mum someday, sharing her fertility journey with fans in 2018 when she had her eggs frozen after struggling with endometriosis.
Last year, Sophie revealed she and Josh “do want children” in future, but admitted the topic is “hard to talk about”.
The Beauty and the Geek presenter told Woman’s Day they’re “not trying”, adding that having her eggs frozen has “taken the pressure off”.
During a webinar with Monash IVF last year, she further explained of her thoughts on being a mum: “You always think ‘oh it’ll happen’ and you’ll meet the right person.
“So I never really worried about it and I kind of hit 30 and I was like, ‘Yeah, I’m still cool’ and then I blinked and I was nearly 40 and I was like, ‘Oh, God’ and before you know it time’s gone.”
Back in March last year, Sophie told KIIS FM’s Kyle and Jackie O that she and Josh would consider adopting a child if they struggled to conceive.
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