[James]

Big Brother betrothal
By Penelope Cross
September 15, 2004


WHEN love blossomed between Nathan "Marty" Martin and Jessica Hardy during the second series of Big Brother in 2002, cynics regarded the romance as a publicity stunt.


Happy couple ... Nathan 'Marty' Martin and Jess Hardy

After all, what did a 20-year-old farmer from Western Australia have in common with a 24-year-old performer from Tweed Heads?

Well, nothing really.

But that didn't stop Marty from declaring then that he would marry her. Not that any of us actually believed it - apparently not even Jess.

"Well you don't," she says now. "The circumstances are bizarre. It's so surreal in the Big Brother house that you believe emotions are stronger than they are.

With him and I, it was a huge bond but in there it's the only world you know. So I guess we knew then - we really did - but it came down to seeing how we went on the outside."

In fact, their relationship in the real world has gone along rather swimmingly because next month, they're getting married - on national television.

Starting tonight, Channel Ten will screen Marty & Jess: An Outback Wedding!, a six-part Newlyweds-style series which follows the happy couple in the lead-up to their big day.

And considering we've already seen them meet and (apparently) consummate their relationship on TV, it's only fitting.

Marty and Jess saw it as a chance to prove their love to the public.

"It sounds so poxy but I actually think it's a case of exposing who we are now," says Jess. "People often think we're only doing it for publicity and that our relationship is a scam.

"They scrutinise us and say we'll never last. So it's an opportunity to show who we truly are and how our relationship works."

The program shows the pair living in their home just outside of Darwin with their three dogs.

"Honestly, our house is like a converted shed," laughs Jess. "It's on about five acres so there's more land than house but we have our dogs.

"We used to have two but Marty found another one pig hunting. We call him 'Wormchild' because he's got worms. That's going to be on the show too."

But while there will be plenty of laughs, the series isn't going to be all smiles.

"That's probably the side of me that you don't often get to see because I do like to joke more than cry," she says.

Jess will also talk about how her relationship with Marty has survived a rough couple of years with the death of her brother in the Bali bombings.

"I've had a few things happen in my life in the past two years so I guess my priorities have changed. I think it's just important to let people know that we're human."

The pair actually broke up briefly in September last year, something Jess says was primarily because of distance.

She was living in Melbourne working fulltime in radio while Marty was slugging it out on the farm in WA.

Interestingly, it was a reunion in January with another Big Brother 2 contestant, the spiky-haired Nathan, that brought the couple back together.

"We were having a break because Marty went to Broome and was off the coast doing pearl diving - I don't know - something on a boat," laughs Jess.

"But we'd speak all the time. Then Nathan asked me to come over and visit him in Perth. Marty was aware that I was coming over and he said 'Let's catch up for dinner one night, but it will just be dinner'.

"Nathan said we could both crash at his joint. The next day we talked about how we would make it work."

The pair settled on a move to the Northern Territory because it meant both would leave behind their families.

"At first we found it rather challenging because neither of us had family or friends here," she says. "But that is what we wanted because we had never lived together on our own before."

Yet despite how well things were going, Jess was still stunned when Marty popped the question in June.

"I had no idea," she laughs. "That morning, he was rummaging around in his bedroom. I found out later he was looking for the ring. He couldn't remember which shirt pocket he hid it in."

Marty later took a reluctant Jess on a ride on his motorbike, insisting they were just going "down the road".

Then he cut down a dirt track, where he'd set up a rug, hamper and esky by a creek.

But because it was a few days short of Jess's 27th birthday, she still didn't see the significance.

"He brought out these two boxes and went through this whole spiel saying 'If you choose the right box, then you'll make me the happiest man alive'. It was so cute. He had tears in his eyes. So then I chose the right box, we had some champagne, I came home and I couldn't stop ringing everyone."

As for comparisions between Marty & Jess: The Outback Wedding! and Newlyweds with Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey, Jess isn't so sure.

The couple don't get Channel 10, so she has only seen one tape of the show.

"I guess there's still a little blonde bimbo in me," she laughs. "But at least I know tuna's not chicken. I'm hoping I won't have too many blonde moments like that."

Marty & Jess: An Outback Wedding!, Wednesday, Ten, 8pm

http://entertainment.news.com.au/com...55Enbv,00.html