Celebrity couple TOWIE’s Mark Wright, 36, and Coronation Street star Michelle Keegan, 35, were first linked when photographs of them kissing in a Dubai nightclub at a New Year’s party surfaced in January 2013.
Both were fresh from breakups. Mark had recently split with high school sweetheart and The Only Way Is Essex co-star Lauren Goodger.
Meanwhile, Michelle’s engagement to Max George from The Wanted had only broken up five months earlier.
However, they didn’t go public with their romance until the British Soap Awards on May 8 2013, which was their first official red carpet appearance together.
As they wrapped their arms around each other for photographs there was no doubt in anybody’s mind they were an item.
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Their seaside engagement
Just a few months later in September, Mark popped the question with a stunning five-carat diamond, appropriately enough on a beach in Dubai, going back to where their romance began.
Michelle confirmed the engagement with a tweet saying: “THANKYOU for all the lovely messages, and yes it’s true @markwright_ and I are engaged !! We are so SO happy 🙂 xxx.” (sic)
Their lavish wedding
The couple’s wedding date was set for May 24 2015, which was just over two years after they went public.
While Mark jetted off to Las Vegas for his stag do, Michelle kept it closer to home, celebrating in Temple Bar in Dublin.
They exchanged their vows at the church of St John Lateran, the chapel inside the scenic grounds of Tudor manor house, Hengrave Hall in Suffolk and allegedly spent more than £1 million on their dream day.
However, the cost was more than covered by a reported £1.2 million magazine deal with Hello and they employed strict measures to protect their privacy. A large white marquee was placed in front of the church doors and security guards waited with large umbrellas as the bride’s Rolls Royce pulled up.
They honeymooned in the Maldives and whilst there Mark took to social media to gush about his newlywed status, writing: “Being a husband. Such an amazing feeling. Buzzing for the journey ahead.”
Inside their luxury home
The couple bought a mock Tudor mansion in Essex in October 2019 for a reported £1.3million. The stunning home had six bathrooms, three bedrooms and a gym, however the pair completely demolished it and built a new property on the space.
They have kept fans abreast of the build and renovations on Instagram. Their new mansion is worth £3.5 million and boasts five-bedrooms, a bar, gym, granny annexe and outdoor swimming pool.
Giving fans a glimpse into their bedroom, Mark shared a short video to his Instagram page which showed that it features a bespoke bed with a pop-up TV.
He wrote: “One of our favourite things about our house is the view from our bedroom. Wasn’t going to block that with a tv…. But we need a tv in our bedroom…. Soooo Simon @clarkeinfinity came up with this fantastic idea!” (sic)
While the finished product is stunning, it hasn’t all been plain sailing. Last month Mark revealed that an attempt to plant trees on the property border for privacy had ended up costing them £30,000 when the trees succumbed to snow during the winter.
The couple also own a property in Marbella and in April Mark told Express.co.uk that he had a construction nightmare with the home.
“It was a company I used in Spain. and it just went totally wrong, so I had to go out there and sort it out,” he said.