She’s beautiful, talented and bears a striking resemblance to yellow Wiggle Emma Watkins.
This is the woman the Wiggles didn’t want you to know about when Lachy Gillespie and Emma announced their shock split two weeks ago.
Singer and dancer Brianne Turk, 34, was given the job of replacing Emma, 28, when she took 11 weeks off to have surgery for endometriosis earlier this year “because she looked so much like Emma” and could sing.
But what the fans didn’t know was that Brianne was 32-year-old Lachy’s first big love – they met and started dating when they both studied for a Bachelor of Musical Theatre at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts 10 years ago.
“It’s the secret they didn’t want anyone to know,” says one insider, who claims even Emma wasn’t aware that Lachy had dated Brianne when she was chosen to be her understudy while she was in hospital.
The ex-girlfriend and ex-wife: With her red hair and big smile, Mildura-born singer Brianne Turk (left) could easily be mistaken for Yellow Wiggle, Emma Watkins.
“I know Brianne was asked to remove any photos of herself with Lachy and she even reached out to friends and asked them to also remove any old photos. It was like they wanted to erase Brianne and Lachy’s romantic history.
“They were concerned that every mum in Australia would be watching Lachy and Brianne to see if there was any chemistry, and that it would distract people from the show.”
Hidden history
Even worse, our insider claims that Emma wasn’t aware of Lachy’s romantic history with Brianne when she was given the job of replacing her as Lachy’s co-star on a tour of regional Australia earlier this year.
“As if Emma would have wanted to know Lachy was travelling around and spending time with his ex-girlfriend while she was in hospital having surgery,” our source says, which may shed light on why the past relationship was kept a secret from everyone.
Brianne fitted in with the group seamlessly and provided support for Lachy as his marriage crumbled.
“Keeping in mind this was a time when Lachy was at his lowest ebb, completely gutted by Emma’s decision that they should have a trial separation.”
“I know he was confiding in Brianne about the breakdown of his marriage. She became a shoulder for him to cry on,” the insider says.
“Lachy was distraught over the breakdown of his marriage, and told Brianne that the biggest issue was that Emma wanted to delay having children to focus on her career, while he wanted to start a family from the day they were married.”
“When Emma had surgery, I think Lachy hoped he’d be able to change her mind about starting a family, and he was gutted when Emma told him she still wasn’t going to rush into having babies.”
There is no suggestion Lachy and Brianne reignited their university romance while on tour, but our source says Brianne told friends she still has “a lot of affection” for him.
“I certainly know from her that there’s a chemistry and a nostalgic connection,” the source says, adding that Brianne “carried a torch for Lachy for years after they split”.
Brianne was 32-year-old Lachy’s first big love – they met and started dating when they both studied for a Bachelor of Musical Theatre at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts 10 years ago.
Meanwhile, Lachy and Emma continue to put on a united professional front after signing a multi million-dollar contract which will see them performing together for the next five years.
It cannot be easy.
