White ‘wedding’ for icebreaker couple on Antarctic voyage

It was far from the dry, dusty wedding in Western Australia’s wheatbelt that Benn Ellard and Briege Whitehead had planned, but when they headed to Antarctica on the RSV Nuyina’s second voyage to the icy continent, they started dreaming of a much colder, visually spectacular ceremony.

With COVID-19 meaning their five-year engagement had dragged on longer than the documentary makers would like, they stashed some wedding clothes in their luggage, just in case.

“We thought that who knows, there might be someone who is a registered celebrant onboard and if the opportunity arises, fantastic, and if there’s not, that’s fine as well,” Mr Ellard said.

Despite there being no celebrant among the Nuyina’s crew, the expeditioners found out about the idea and ran with it.

“Basically, a wedding planning committee got formed and it went from there,” Mr Ellard said.

“Briege and I didn’t have a whole lot to do with the actual planning of it, we just sort of rocked up on a beautiful Sunday afternoon in Antarctica and everything had been organised.”

The crew crafted decorations to kit out the vessel and played wedding music at the ceremony, while the chef constructed an iceberg wedding cake, adorned with little penguins.

The vessel’s captain performed the “wedding” service on the helideck, about a day before the Nuyina was set to arrive at Davis Station, giving the couple a moment they would never forget.

“For everyone to go to such lengths to make the whole evening and the day such a special event for the whole ship, not just us, was quite incredible,” Mr Ellard said.

“It was certainly a pinch yourself kind of moment, you can’t even dream or think of something like that happening.

The couple will wait until their September wedding in Bruce Rock to tie the knot officially, surrounded by friends and family.