Weddings

Bindi Irwin marries Chandler Powell in intimate ceremony as Covid-19 lockdown rules tighten

''We've planned this beautiful day for nearly a year and had to change everything... This was a very difficult decision but important to keep everyone safe,'' Bindi has said.
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Bindi Irwin and Chandler Powell are officially married.

The couple, who got engaged on Bindi’s 21st birthday last year, brought their wedding forward in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The passionate conservationist and her American wakeboarder fiance had originally planned to hold an extravagant wedding in April, but were forced to cancel due to the Covid-19 pandemic. They brought their wedding forward and married in an intimate ceremony at Australia Zoo on Wednesday.

Bindi announced the happy news on Instagram:

“March 25th 2020 ❤️ We held a small ceremony and I married my best friend,” she captioned a photo of the newlyweds on their big day.

“There are no words to describe the amount of love and light in my heart right now. We’ve planned this beautiful day for nearly a year and had to change everything, as we didn’t have guests at our wedding.”

Bindi said that bringing their wedding forward and forgoing having wedding guests was “a very difficult decision but important to keep everyone safe.

“We wish all of our friends and family could have been there with us, however it’s lovely that we will be able to share photos and videos,” she continued.

“Right now we’re encouraging the world to hold onto hope and love, which will carry us forward during this profound time in history.”

Chandler posted the same photo, writing, “We’re finally married!”

“Today, March 25, 2020, marks the most amazing day of my life,” he continued.

“I married my best friend. After almost a year of planning, we changed everything so that we could enjoy a safe and small private ceremony at our home, Australia Zoo. As we embark on this new life chapter I hope that we can share some love in the world, especially during this challenging time.”

Footage obtained by Channel Seven showed the young couple preparing to saying “I do”.

A collection of zoo animals, including a rhinoceros, appeared to have played a part in Bindi and Chandler’s big day.

Their scaled-back wedding came a day after Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced strict new laws around social gatherings to fight the spread of Covid-19. Weddings are now only permitted to involve five people – the couple, a marriage celebrant and two witnesses.

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Bindi and Chandler’s romance is one that seems to have been written in the stars.

The couple met at Australia Zoo, which had originally been opened in 1970 as a small reptile and fauna park by Bindi’s grandparents and Bindi’s late father Steve Irwin’s parents, Bob and Lyn Irwin.

Steve Iriwn met his wife and Bindi’s mother, Terri Irwin, at Australia Zoo too.

And then when Chandler visited the zoo with his family in 2013, he met Bindi.

After a long-distance relationship Chandler moved in with the famiy at Australia Zoo, and then the couple got engaged on Bindi’s July 24 birthday last year.

Bindi took to Instagram to say: “July 24th 2019 ❤️ On my birthday I said ‘yes’ and ‘forever’ to the love of my life.

“Chandler, close to 6 years ago I fell in love with you and every day since has been a whirlwind of adventure and true happiness. I’m so looking forwarding to spending our forever together as your wife. Here’s to a lifetime of friendship, purpose and unconditional love. — Now let’s get married already!”

In the absence of Bindi’s late father Steve Irwin, the passionate conservationist had asked her brother Robert to walk her down the aisle.

In a heartfelt post on social media she wrote, “Dad, You would be so incredibly proud of Robert. He has been such an amazing support during this beautiful new life chapter.

“I know you’d be beaming with pride when the time comes that he walks me down the aisle. I wish you could be here for these moments, but I know that your spirit lives on in us ❤️”

In 2017, Bindi said she knew Chandler was “The One”, and someone she hoped to spend the rest of her life with.

“I believe there’s always someone for everyone and when you find that one, as we have found each other, it’s a real blessing and a privilege,” Bindi told The Australian Women’s Weekly at the time.

She said that her late father Steve Irwin, who passed away from a sting-ray attack in 2006, would have absolutely loved her man.

“I’m lucky I have found the one, the person I want to spend all my time with … We all think Dad would have loved Chandler,” she said.

A huge congrats to the newlyweds.

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