Victoria Fren says her new husband Nathan Moran’s late grandfather Barry – who sadly passed away a week before their wedding – “was definitely looking down on us” given the unseasonably sunny skies and “perfect” weather the couple enjoyed on their special day at the picturesque Kangaroo Valley Bush Retreat in the NSW Southern Highlands on May 6.
Love is in the air for Victoria and Nathan.
(Image: Woman’s Day)Along a winding path, into an ancient rock cathedral shaded by gum trees, the 29-year-old bride made her way down the aisle on the arm of her father Mark Fren, who was overcome with emotion.
“When I saw Victoria, I was bawling my eyes out. I just couldn’t stop,” Mark tells Woman’s Day. “I didn’t know whether it was because I saw my little girl was getting married, she was all grown up, or I was thinking of my bank account!”
The star of the day was less-than-impressed at her dad’s show of emotion, though. “It actually p**ed me off,” Victoria joked to Woman’s Day.*
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“Everyone was looking at him instead of looking at me. It’s about me!”
Proud father Mark walked his daughter down the aisle.
(Image: Woman’s Day)VOW OF LAUGHTER
The family’s signature humour was evident in the couple’s vows, too.
While groom Nathan, 30, revealed his relief that the big day had finally come around so he could ditch the “man shakes”, Victoria promised to continue bringing back duty-free alcohol for her new husband from her trips overseas with her famous family for Nine’s Travel Guides.
The groom’s Aboriginal heritage was also celebrated, with Nathan’s cousin Brenden delivering a moving Acknowledgement of Country and didgeridoo performance during the ceremony.
“It was amazing,” says Victoria, who explained how the whole day was inspired by Nathan and his family’s love of the bush.
After guests enjoyed drinks on the sunset deck, perched high above the valley while the bride and groom posed for pictures, it was on to the reception, with the highlight of the whole wedding for Victoria – the couple’s first dance.
The couple were surrounded by their nearest and dearest.
(Image: Woman’s Day)
Nathan’s cousin Brenden delivered a moving Acknowledgment of Country.
(Image: Woman’s Day)“We’d practised so long for it and it definitely paid off,” says the reality star, who took lessons with her fiance at Newcastle’s Your First Dance Co for weeks prior to pulling off the six-song mash-up extravaganza.
“It was so epic,” says Victoria. “We had the dry ice and the fireworks and then the band chimed in. It was spectacular.”
So too were the bridal party’s custom suits, which fitted the bush theme in shades of rust and botanical print ties – all from Rundle Tailoring in Newcastle.
The couple’s celebrity friends Mitch Edwards and Mark McKie took on the MC duties for the evening, with Mitch explaining how The Block stars “immediately said, ‘Of course!'” when they were asked to do the honours.
“They were fantastic,” says Victoria of the pair’s hosting skills. “They’re such lovely people.”
Victoria also credits her dad with pleasing the crowd with a “beautiful speech”, but says it was Nathan’s best man, friend and neighbour Mitchell who “stole the show” with his.
Michael Teng was the only Travel Guides castmate on the tight guest list, with Victoria revealing the couple “only had limited numbers” and “didn’t really want it to be a Travel Guides thing”.
“We just wanted it to be about me and Nathan,” she shares.
The couple were surrounded by beautiful scenery.
(Image: Woman’s Day)The couple’s nearest and dearest enjoyed a banquet feast of delicious dishes, including black angus sirloin with miso, beetroot-cured ocean trout and butternut dauphinoise with browned sage butter from Rabbit & Co Caterers.
“The Frens love a buffet,” says Mark. And the gourmet grub was washed down with Peter Drayton Wines Pokolbin, before the partygoers had fun in the Peachy Booths photobooth, Michael’s new side gig.
After enjoying the dessert bar and wedding cake from The Patisserie Oak Flats, which the bride says was “absolutely beautiful”, the evening ended with guests gathering around a big bonfire.
“Everyone got changed and then met by the fire to debrief after the reception,” says Victoria of the warm ending to a magical day.
And if this were Travel Guides, the Frens say they’d give their “unique” wedding venue five stars. “It was just absolutely stunning,” says Mark.
The wedding was filled with Fren Family fun.
(Image: Woman’s Day)The newlyweds are now packing their bags for Thailand for their honeymoon, but Victoria still has a long bucket list of places she’d like to visit with her funny family on Travel Guides.
“I want to do Spain, the Maldives,” says the star, who works in disability and aged care support when she isn’t filming the show.
“There are so many places in the world we still haven’t been to yet.” And Victoria is keen to stay on the Nine reality hit “as long as they still want us”.
“We love Travel Guides. It’s so nice, with me and Jonathon being older, to be able to still travel with our parents.”
She and Nathan also have other plans for the near future. The couple – who have been together since they were 18 after meeting through mutual friends – are already parents to a fur baby, their dog Zeus, but plan to add one of the human variety to their family soon.
“I think we’d like one or two kids,” Victoria tells Woman’s Day. And she says she’d “love” if brother Jono and his wife Danielle, both 32 – who tied the knot in 2021 – started a family at the same time so the cousins could grow up together. “That would be beautiful.”
But Victoria and Nathan’s future children won’t be Frens – much to her family’s dismay.
“We are now the Morans,” Victoria declares. “No longer a Fren… I think the family deep down is heartbroken.”
See more on A Current Affair, Wednesday, 7pm, before Travel Guides on Nine.
The couple are already looking to add a new addition to the family.
(Image: Woman’s Day)