Strangers and a Wedding: Still going strong 16 years on
It's been 16 years since The Edge radio station started setting up brides and grooms who have never met and they're doing it again.
Paula and Zane Nicholl were the first pair to put their future in the hands of a few radio hosts and they're still happily married and living in Hamilton with three children, two boys and a girl.
The radio station picks the bride and groom from a selection based on their attributes, friend and family advice, and what the people are looking for in a lifelong partner.
The first time the bride and groom meet is on their wedding day.
This is the fourth time the radio show has run the set-up and this time the chosen groom will get to choose his bride.
The Nicholls married in October 1999, following the first season of the Strangers and a Wedding radio hook-up.
Zane Nicholl puts the success of their match-up down to the pair being in the right frame of mind.
While the couple were ready to get married without meeting their future life partner, it was not an easy process for their families, Nicholl said.
picture: romantica bridesmaid dresses"For us, it was really hard on both sets of parents, particularly not knowing the family they were marrying into.
While it was not the most conventional way to pick a bride, Nicholl said he did not regret going through the process.
"It's definitely life altering, but it's an absolute blast and you won't regret a moment of it.
"If you are looking for love and ready to settle down, I can highly recommend this way of doing it."
After the success of the Nicholls' wedding, The Edge decided to do it again four years later.
Steve and Kersha Veix married in 2003. They now live in Nelson with three children.
And in 2007 the station paired up Chantelle and Paul Court.
The station has sorted through the men and have chosen Brad as the groom for this year's wedding.
He's a 32-year-old sales rep from Auckland who rates himself as perfect husband material.
He describes himself as Mr Fix-it, the coolest uncle, a rugby superstar and a good cook.
Brad spent two years in the army and eight years travelling, and says he's ready to find a wife.
He's an Aquarius who is looking for someone over 26, a non-smoker, kind, genuine, with a big heart.
She needs to be a girlie girl, outdoorsy, good sense of humour, good family values.
While it might sound like a crazy way to start a marriage, it has succeeded where online dating, Tinder and reality television show Married at First Sight have failed.
Radio host Jay-Jay Harvey, who is heavily involved in the whole experience, said she was surprised how successful the series had been.
"I'll be devastated if any of them break up…
"This is not a joke…This is not a pisstake for me, personally."
Harvey said unlike Tinder and internet dating, Strangers and a Wedding brides and grooms judged each other based on their personalities rather than looks.
"It's an absolutely crazy idea; you have to be pretty brave to do it…
"It's a crazy thing to do but it's very exciting and it could be the best thing you ever do."
Now that the radio show has found its groom, it's on the hunt for a bride to get hitched on the Rooftop Terrace at Rydges Auckland later in the year.
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