Against the Odds

IT’S A LOVE STORY

Few love stories pull on our heartstrings like The Notebook, John Lennon and Yoko Ono, or Shrek and Fiona, and Vic and Robyn are no different – taking their rightful place amongst these legendary relationships. The couple met at Falls Creek while they were both working at the ski fields over the winter season back in 2011. Since then, the couple’s strength has only been further cemented. Some seven years later, Vic got down on one knee surrounded by the white sandy beaches and tropical waters of Mala Mala Beach Club in Fiji, where Robyn tearfully accepted.

The couple initially envisioned spending their wedding and honeymoon extravaganza in Bali. With the help of Global Weddings Planning, the couple’s dream day was meticulously organised, leaving the couple confident their dreams would be brought to life. However, the full force of the first round of restrictions came into place a mere two weeks before the couple’s flights abroad – hampering their dream of saying ‘I do’ in beautiful Bali. Like many, the couple optimistically anticipated this would quickly pass. However almost a year later and tragically having lost a significant sum of money, the couple were unable to go to Winchester for a nice cold pint to wait for this to blow over, and instead elected for a beachside wedding in Melbourne.

FROM SMALL BEGINNINGS

Having long filled the airwaves with characteristic Melbourne sounds, is iconic Melburnian, Byron Cooke. Despite almost a year elapsing since first being plunged into one of the strictest and longest lockdowns the world has seen, the impacts of COVID-19 still remain within society, even as we eagerly stride towards the complete easing of restrictions. Like Daniel Andrews sporting a North Face jacket, The Byron Cooke Show also signalled the start of something beautiful for Vic and Robyn.

One of Byron’s inaugural podcasts, ‘Wedding Cashers’, explored the difficulties presented to the wedding industry during the pandemic, as well as sharing the devastating experiences many couples encountered when attempting to plan a wedding during this turbulent time. The podcast effectively evoked a sense of optimism as the episode’s industry interviewees rallied together to help Vic and Robyn’s wedding come to life. If Jack Johnson is to be believed, “it’s always better when we’re together”, and if COVID-19 were an Aesop’s Fable, the moral would be that if we all collectively work towards a goal, anything is possible.

Byron Cooke was the first to volunteer his services for the happy couple, electing to MC the day’s events. Shortly after, Dirk Fielding, publisher and founder of Melbourne Wedding and Bride, was inspired by Byron’s generosity and the adversity Vic and Robyn had faced last year, offering Vic and Robyn to share their story in this very magazine, which will stand as a treasured keepsake for years to come. Mel Jacobs, also touched by Vic and Robyn’s persistence in the face of hardship, completed the deal by offering her exceptional services as a celebrant – ensuring there was not a dry eye in the house on the day of the wedding.