Valerie & Lloyd

Love finds you when you least expect it.

- Gabby Reyes Libarios

That’s exactly what happened to actress Bangs Garcia and her Filipino British husband Lloyd Birchmore.

The sexy Kapamilya star—whose real name is Valerie Garcia but who came to be known by the screen name Bangs Garcia after playing a character named Bangs in the 2006 TV sitcom Let’s Go— met the handsome Fil-British businessman in January 2015 while she and her close friends were celebrating the New Year in the island paradise of Boracay, Aklan.

“My friends and I were having drinks just outside Epic,” Valerie recalls, referring to one of the popular drinking spots in Boracay. “I was forcing my friends to go inside with me, but they remained outside. On my way to the bar, I saw my cousin, whom I hadn’t seen for a very long time because we were not on good terms. It was nice that we were able to talk and reconcile.”

It was during her heart-to-heart with her cousin that Valerie caught the eye of Lloyd Birchmore, who was also partying with his friends at the time. “All of a sudden, our eyes just met,” Valerie says. “And you know what, it felt like we were in a commercial.”

Valerie likened that moment to a scene from a romantic movie: everything went hazy, and the only thing that came into focus was this tall, handsome guy who was staring right back at her.

The actress admits that it was the first time she was smitten by a man’s good looks. Having been in showbiz for many years, she was used to seeing dropdead gorgeous men all the time. “I rarely get attracted to good-looking guys because I’m from the showbiz industry,” she says. “But with him, for some reason I got really struck. It’s like, ‘Wow, type ko talaga ’tong guy na ’to.’”

Turned out, the feeling was mutual. Lloyd was instantly taken with the voluptuous actress.