Surprise wedding as Melbourne Rose takes title she was really after
The 26-year-old stunned family and friends yesterday by marrying her fiancé, Cormac O’Sullivan, 30, in Lispole, near Dingle, Co Kerry.
The couple planned their hush-hush wedding three months ago, but only a handful of people knew the secret — and managed to keep it.
Forty-seven guests were invited to what was supposed to be a post-Rose festival lunch by the Melbourne rose committee at noon in the Skellig Hotel, Dingle.
Fair-haired Christine, who moved to Australia from her home in Dingle with Cormac four years ago, turned up in a black dress and her Melbourne sash for the supposed bash.
She and Cormac left after a short while. The guests were then thanked for coming, told the lunch was merely a ruse, and all were instructed to be in Lispole church for the 1.30pm nuptials.
“We’ve absolutely surprised everyone,’’ Christine declared as she sipped champagne at the wedding reception in the Skellig Hotel last night.
“It was very spontaneous, but we wanted to do it our way. I knew I was coming back here to marry Cormac so I wasn’t after the Rose of Tralee title, I was after the Mrs O’Sullivan title.’’
They decided to tie the knot after the regional rose finals in Portlaoise last June.
Their families had earlier been told to be ready for a trip to Melbourne for a wedding in Dec 2015 or Jan 2016.
“My Rose tour has ended but my new life as an O’Sullivan is only starting. It was our wee secret,’’ said Christine, who moved from Belfast to Dingle with her family 11 years ago.
“The other Roses knew so I even had to deactivate my Facebook page momentarily in case someone congratulated me on it and gave the game away.”
A beaming Christine looked a picture in an off-white, full-length wedding gown with lace bodice, while Cormac wore a splendidly sober navy suit, white shirt, and red tie.
The couple will shortly return to Melbourne, where Christine is in commercial real estate and Cormac is in facilities management.
“Melbourne is a great city. We love it and have made many great friends there. We’ve built a fabulous life there," said Cormac.
