Y’all, I’m still GAGGED by that surprise Destiny’s Child reunion at Beyoncé’s final Cowboy Carter show! It’s been years since this iconic trio came together to maximise their joint slay 💅.

And if you haven’t already, please do yourselves a favour and watch Netflix’s Building The Band, where Kelly serves as a judge (and rightfully so). I watched it over the weekend and now I’m obsessed! I won’t spoil it, but it’s basically a cross between Love Is Blind and X Factor. For all my fellow OG Directioners, Liam Payne was also one of the judges, and it was so nice to see him again 🥹.

Speaking of talent competitions, we also attended the Red Bull Dance Your Style finals on the weekend and interviewed some of the dancers, asking them what the best dance move of all time is. Let us know what your signature move is in the comments 💃! Back in the day, mine was definitely flossing, but now I’m basically a lowkey geriatric who needs a hip replacement.

And if that doesn’t feel nostalgic enough, maybe this will — does anyone remember Jess and Marty from Big Brother Season 2? Before there was MAFS drama, there were these two Aussies who captured the nation’s hearts with their on-screen romance, which led to a televised wedding. But what happened after the cameras stopped rolling? We recently caught up with Jess, 23 years later, to unearth the truth about their iconic relationship. Scroll to find out!

See y’all next week,

Livia xx (@livia_lun)

Q: What year was The Veronicas' debut album The Secret Life Of... released?

To the girl on Hinge who unmatched me after I said I’d never seen Shrek — at first, I was hurt, but I so get it now. After our date, I went home and watched it alone. In shame. And honestly? Your shock and horror at my ignorance was completely fair. Shrek is layered, profound, emotionally raw. The soundtrack changed my brain chemistry. Please come back so we can watch 2, 3 and 4 together.

Cody from Portsmith

Remember When…Two Loveable Aussies Fell In Love On Big Brother In The ‘00s And Got Married

By Tahlia Pritchard

Let’s take a stroll down reality TV memory lane together: the year was 2002 and Australia was captivated watching two young Aussies fall for each other on one of the country’s newest and most popular TV shows.

Big Brother had entered its second season, and it was a cultural phenomena. Over 1.8 million Aussies tuned in on average to Season 2, and while Peter Corbett took out the winning title, it was the runner-up Nathan ‘Marty’ Martin and his romance with fourth-placed Jess Hardy that captivated audiences.

Jess and Marty were one of Australia’s original reality TV love stories, long before The Bachelor or Married At First Sight came along. The laidback and charismatic Aussies fell for each other during the Big Brother experience and quickly became household names.

And post-show, their fame continued, with their high-profile romance generating huge media attention. When they decided to take their relationship to the next level and get married, Australia celebrated with a TV special titled Marty & Jess: An Outback Wedding. 

Unfortunately it wasn’t meant to be for the young lovebirds, and they split a little over a year after their wedding. 

23 years on (if you can even believe it?!) Jess told BuzzFeed Australia she only looks back on the romance “fondly”.

“Even though we don’t talk anymore, we’re civil,” Jess revealed. “I’m glad he’s gone on and had the family he wanted to have. I think it was such a great experience at the time, we were so immersed in it, we just forgot the cameras were rolling. We really were in love.”

The pair got married in 2004 with Jess saying while the media hype potentially spurred them along, there was no doubt in her mind they would’ve got married regardless.

“It was such a whirlwind,” she said. “I guess the timeline was fuelled by the media. But I know that we would’ve got married because we did talk about it, but everything was sensationalised and amplified. Everything was hustled quite quickly, so that’s what felt like a shotgun wedding. But I’m a fly by the seat of my pants type anyway!”

Jess has no regrets about her Big Brother time, nor the marriage.

“I don’t think I would’ve done it any differently, because it was just the way we were. Both of us really liked spontaneity.”

It fell apart from the pair around 15 months later, with Jess citing youth and her lack of desire to move to Marty’s family farm as a catalyst for the marriage breakdown.

“I think I wanted a bit more stimulation,” she candidly said. “I feel really bad because I knew he wanted the country life, to settle down, to have the kids, and I don’t think I was ready for that. I wanted to travel overseas, and he wasn’t really up for that because he loves Australia and he didn’t feel like he needed to see the rest of the world. 

“I really thought the farm was awesome, but I don’t know what role I would’ve played there. I thought, I’m just going to have to be a farmer’s wife. And I don’t think I was set up for that at the time, because I was so young. I just had all these aspirations and he just had to stay on the farm because that was his duty. 

“We were so young and having fun and that’s what worked in Darwin [where the couple moved after Big Brother and got married]. But I guess his family were in WA and mine were on the Gold Coast. And then if we were to have a family, it was so far away from my mum and dad. The reality just set in and it just felt really isolating.” 

“Mum has sent a birthday message to him!” she laughed. “We don’t forget his birthday. He has a new family now though and I don’t know where I fit into that. We’ve said our goodbyes, and it’s just two different parallels. As emotional as it is, I’d love to have him in my life, but I don’t think there’s a world where that would work. If we saw each other in the street, of course, we’d be cool.

“The only problem is mum still has the wedding photos in the house! And to this day I go, ‘Why are they so prominent in the home?!’” Jess continued. “I don’t have any framed in my house, I can promise you that!”  

After splitting from Marty, Jess went onto have a successful radio career in Queensland, something she’s still doing and something she credits the Big Brother journey for leading her to. 

“I didn’t know which avenue to take [post-show] and I ended up doing radio,” Jess said. “And that has given me so much experience. I met so many amazing people [through the show]. It put me in touch with meeting great Aussies and mentors. It really did become a platform for me to move to radio and I don’t know if I ever would have had that dream fulfilled if it wasn’t for the show.”

Jess also opened up to about some recent life hurdles, as the former reality star battles breast cancer.

“The last couple of years have been pretty full on. I ended up getting breast cancer, so I have been lucky I can still work, that’s been an awesome distraction. I had a double mastectomy last year, and it’s just been step by step trying to get to the other side.

“I’ve still got it, unfortunately, it didn’t all go away. But I am just so lucky that I’m supported by great friends and a good workplace. I love what I do and I just think… don’t waste time doing anything that doesn’t serve you.” 

Jess also shouted out Cancer Council and the Lismore Cancer Council for their support during her health battle. 

“They’ve been so supportive and I’ve just been so lucky because I just feel like I’ve got all the support here that I need in this beautiful little community.”

You can stay up to date with Jess Hardy on her Instagram (@jessradiogaga) and you can find out more about Cancer Council’s work here.

I was hiking with a friend up a steep mountain last week. About 10 minutes into the trail, we passed a middle-aged couple sitting on a bench mid-argument:
“John, there is no way I’m surviving this. It’s been like five minutes and my knees are already giving out.”
“It’s okay, we can just take it slow.”
Then the woman looks up, points directly at us and goes, “LOOK! Those girls are literally 30 years younger than me and they’re also dying.”
And here I was…thinking I was hiding my panting and wheezing well 😭.

Kaya from Glenorchy

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A: 2005

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