The adorable story of how Mel Schilling met her husband and became a mum later in life

‘To Maddie and me, she was our wee Melsie’

2 hours ago

Ellissa Bain | Entertainment

Mel Schilling’s husband has shared a touching tribute after the MAFS host passed away this week aged 54, and their love story is so sweet.

She died “peacefully” and “surrounded by love” on Tuesday after a three-year battle with colon cancer. In a statement posted on her Instagram page, Mel’s husband Gareth spoke about what an “incredible mum, role model, and soulmate” she was. He wrote: “To most of you she was Mel Schilling – matriarch of MAFS and queen of reality TV. To Maddie and me, she was our wee Melsie.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mel Schilling (@mel_schilling1)

Gareth Brisbane isn’t in the limelight, but often appeared on Mel’s Instagram. He’s from Northern Ireland and has his own company. Mel told WHO in 2024: “He runs his own online business and we’re two alphas, both very strong-willed! But we’re open to learning from each other as well.”

The dating expert was great at helping other couples find love, but she was unlucky in her own love life throughout her 20s and 30s and didn’t meet Gareth until she was almost 40. They met on the dating website eHarmony in 2011.

Mel told OK!: “I was single for my entire thirties. I wasn’t interested in anyone. I was busy travelling the world, working overseas, I was all about building my business and just living a great life. And so we were both nearly 40 when we met, and he just turned my world upside down. I was not expecting that! We met on eHarmony.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mel Schilling (@mel_schilling1)

I hate to say it, but Bonnie Blue’s filthy response to HSTikkyTokky has changed my opinion of her

I made OnlyFans content with HSTikkyTokky, this is how gross he and his comments truly are

Miss Universe shares statement as OnlyFans model boyfriend cheats with huge male pop star

“He’s from Whitehead in Northern Ireland, but he was living in Adelaide, and I was in Melbourne. We did long distance for six weeks, which was really pivotal in the success of our relationship, because we didn’t physically meet for those six weeks, but we were communicating every day.”

They had a “commitment ceremony” in Bali in July 2018 before getting married officially two years later, in 2020. The pair soon realised they wanted children together and Mel fell pregnant, but sadly had a miscarriage at 12 weeks. After that, they decided to do IVF and welcomed their daughter Maddie together in 2015, who is now 10.

In her final post, Mel shared a photo of the three of them together and wrote: “These two beside me are my everything.”