How we stay married …Peter & Bridget Helliar
The Australian Women's Weekly|May 2021
The comedian may have written a show about maintaining a long-lasting relationship, but it’s his wife Bridget whom he credits with teaching him how to keep the marital magic alive.
TIFFANY DUNK
How we stay married …Peter & Bridget Helliar

Kismet is a powerful word. The belief that fate can lead us to something that is “meant to be” is an idea that is both tantalising and terrifying all at once.

Certainly it’s not a word Peter Helliar thought would play a role in shaping his own future. But all that changed in 1999 as he was waiting to board a flight from Sydney to Melbourne. Then 24 and taking the early steps in his comedy career, he spotted a beautiful blonde across the boarding gate lounge – and suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to introduce himself.

“For better or worse, you’re not the guy who approaches strange women,” he told himself sternly. And so he let the moment pass, hoping he’d magically sit next to her on the flight.

“But that didn’t happen,” he says. “And I remember feeling relieved. I thought, imagine how embarrassing it will be when her boyfriend picks her up at the airport and she’s like, ‘This is the guy who tried to hit on me’.”

He spotted the potential girl of his dreams once more being met by her parents and grandmother. ‘Missed opportunity,’ he thought, ‘but that’s okay.’ And off he went home, putting the encounter out of his mind.

And then … kismet. Just three days later, Peter was preparing to do a stand-up routine at Collingwood’s Prince Patrick Hotel when he spotted a friend in the audience. And next to that friend was the 22-year-old woman from the plane – Bridget, who would become his wife of close to 18 years and the mother of their three children – Liam, 18, Aidan, 16, and Oscar, 12.

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der May 2021-Ausgabe von The Australian Women's Weekly.

Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der May 2021-Ausgabe von The Australian Women's Weekly.

Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.

WEITERE ARTIKEL AUS THE AUSTRALIAN WOMEN'S WEEKLYAlle anzeigen
Hitting a nerve
The Australian Women's Weekly

Hitting a nerve

Regulating the vagus nerve with its links to depression, anxiety, arthritis and diabetes - could aid physical and mental wellbeing.

time-read
5 Minuten  |
July 2024
Take me to the river
The Australian Women's Weekly

Take me to the river

With a slew of new schedules and excursions to explore, the latest river cruises promise to give you experiences and sights you won’t see on the ocean.

time-read
4 Minuten  |
July 2024
The last act
The Australian Women's Weekly

The last act

When family patriarch Tom Edwards passes away, his children must come together to build his coffin in four days, otherwise they will lose their inheritance. Can they put their sibling rivalry aside?

time-read
8 Minuten  |
July 2024
MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN
The Australian Women's Weekly

MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN

When Alexei Navalny died in a brutal Arctic prison, Vladimir Putin thought he had triumphed over his most formidable opponent. Until three courageous women - Alexei's mother, wife and daughter - took up his fight for freedom.

time-read
8 Minuten  |
July 2024
The wines and lines mums
The Australian Women's Weekly

The wines and lines mums

Once only associated with glamorous A-listers, cocaine is now prevalent with the soccer-mum set - as likely to be imbibed at a school fundraiser as a nightclub. The Weekly looks inside this illegal, addictive, rising trend.

time-read
10 Minuten  |
July 2024
Jenny Liddle-Bob.Lucy McDonald.Sasha Green - Why don't you know their names?
The Australian Women's Weekly

Jenny Liddle-Bob.Lucy McDonald.Sasha Green - Why don't you know their names?

Indigenous women are being murdered at frightening rates, their deaths often left uninvestigated and widely unreported. Here The Weekly meets families who are battling grief and desperate for solutions.

time-read
10+ Minuten  |
July 2024
Growing happiness
The Australian Women's Weekly

Growing happiness

Through drought flood and heartbreak, Jenny Jennr's sunflowers bloom with hope, sunshine and joy

time-read
8 Minuten  |
July 2024
"Thank God we make each other laugh"
The Australian Women's Weekly

"Thank God we make each other laugh"

A shared sense of humour has seen Aussie comedy couple Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall conquer the world. But what does life look like when the cameras go down:

time-read
7 Minuten  |
July 2024
Winter baking with apples and pears
The Australian Women's Weekly

Winter baking with apples and pears

Celebrate the season of Australian apples and pears with these sweet bakes that will keep the midwinter blues away.

time-read
10+ Minuten  |
July 2024
Budget dinner winners
The Australian Women's Weekly

Budget dinner winners

Looking for some thrifty inspiration for weeknight dinners? Try our tasty line-up of low-cost recipes that are bound to please everyone at the table.

time-read
5 Minuten  |
July 2024