‘At 30, I decided to marry myself’: Byron Bay singer Liana Cornell on finding love

Liana Cornell is a musician and actor who is best known for performing music as Faery. Here, the 35-year-old shares her close relationship with her dad, the reason she decided to marry herself and her famous godfather.

“My celebrity crush was David Bowie in the film Labyrinth. I was fascinated by him.”Credit: Max D’Orsogna

My maternal grandfather, Fred, worked as a cane cutter in Queensland. Mum [actor Delvene Delaney] and her side of the family were blue-collar and hard-working. My pop could fix and build anything. He’d take me to school on the back of his motorcycle, and I was obsessed with his workshop. I was 23 when he passed.

My paternal grandfather, John, who went by the name Jacko, worked as a bookie in Kalgoorlie, WA. He passed away when I was 11. When my dad, John Cornell [best known for his character Strop on The Paul Hogan Show], was born, he was christened Jack but everyone called him John.

Dad and I were very close. He worked as a journalist in Perth and then as a [TV and film] producer. We had a similar way of thinking. He taught me fishing and we loved being in nature.

The ocean was a big connector for me and Dad. He was a great swimmer and I learnt a lot of life lessons. When he taught me crabbing, he told me to never take a pregnant female. He was very firm about the rules of nature and I’ve extrapolated that way of understanding throughout my life.
We always read Pulitzer Prize-winning books and compared notes, too.

I’m the youngest of three daughters [her sisters are Melissa and Allira] – and a pleasant surprise, I was told. I was home-schooled on and off until high school because that worked for my parents’ busy careers.

My English teachers at Byron Bay High School, Mr Wallace and Mr Lewis, ignited my interest in literature. My drama teacher, Mr Owens, believed in me the most. He’s the reason I decided to pursue acting.

My first kiss happened when I was 11 with a boy aged 15. It was New Year’s Eve in 1999 and a group of us were in a hot tub, taking it in turns to see who could hold their breath underwater the longest. He was a family friend and we both kissed underwater. I later found out that he was also kissing the other girl.

My celebrity crush was David Bowie in the film Labyrinth [1986]. I was fascinated by him. I don’t only date men, and I felt David set that whole story for me in this film.

I had my first boyfriend from the age of 14 until I was 18. He kept other male friends at a distance; it was a good lesson in who not to date.

Dad died in 2021, aged 80 [he’d been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease 20 years earlier]. Mum had been Dad’s nurse as well as his wife, and she did everything for him. I’ve never witnessed a love like theirs, but I had to learn that I am not meant to be the nurse and mother of the people I date.

Growing up with Dad sick, I had to relearn how to be in a relationship. At age 30, I decided to marry myself. I had a big celebration and got everyone to dress in white. I asked Dad to walk me down the aisle to my mother.

I was single and pregnant when I lost my baby in 2022. It happened a year after I lost Dad, and after I’d called off my wedding. The best part about this is that it started a healing process in me. I did two years with a relationship coach; I’d experienced rape in my past, and it took me a while to fall in love with good men again.

I was celibate until I started dating my current partner in January; I had a lot of men asking me out, and I said no to all of them. I’m glad I didn’t get married, too. Right now, I am happy and in love with a beautiful person.

Paul Hogan is my godfather and a really good man in my life. He has always been a softy, very nurturing, and he’s believed in my career from the very beginning. You don’t always get that level of support.

Liana Cornell’s debut album, Rising, is out now under the moniker Faery.

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