Sophie Falkiner is sparkling with happiness – and it’s all thanks to an unmissable diamond now sitting on her ring finger.
The former Wheel of Fortune presenter has announced her engagement to Steve Wood. He proposed during a romantic holiday in Queensland’s Whitsunday Islands, getting down on one knee on a secluded stretch of beach.
WATCH NOW: Sophie Richie-Grainge Wedding Makeup. Article continues after video.
“It’s official,” Sophie wrote while flashing her stunning solitaire ring on Instagram.
“Thankyou for making me the happiest woman I have ever been. Your kindness, strength, thoughtfulness, integrity, and love blows me away. I love you, and I can’t wait to be your wife.”
Sophie, who turns 50 next March, never gave up on love following the end of her first marriage, but admits she was still taken by surprise when it struck again.
When New Idea caught up with Sophie in December last year, she confirmed she was head over heels for Steve, and hinted that an engagement might be around the corner. At that point, Sophie and Steve, a chairman of an IT company, had been seeing each other for about a year.
“Yes, I’m in love,” she told us.
“He’s lovely and kind and thoughtful. He’s probably one of the kindest men I’ve ever met and I feel very lucky. He definitely has a lot of character and he’s definitely a solid, good man.”
Sophie says Steve swept her off her feet after a chance meeting at a restaurant in Avalon on Sydney’s Northern Beaches. It wasn’t long before he won the love and affection of her teenage kids, Bella and Jack.
“It’s relaxed and he’s amazing with my kids,” she said.
And although Steve doesn’t have his own children, he easily adapted to being a stepdad to “witty and wonderful” Bella and her basketball-mad brother.
“He’s a real family man,” Sophie shared. “He adores his family, like I adore mine, and comes from a big family. There are a lot of similarities.”
When she announced their engagement, Sophie also revealed Steve has the approval of her parents and the girlfriends who supported her during her 2015 divorce from radio executive Tony Thomas.
“My family, children, and friends are all so excited to have you in their lives. As I’m equally excited to become a member of your beautiful family,” she wrote to Steve in her post.
Sophie moved into Steve’s beautiful beachfront mansion as their relationship blossomed, and has transformed it from a bachelor pad into a stylish and comfortable family home full of love.
With the couple planning to tie the knot sooner rather than later, Sophie will have her pick of designers, who are surely lining up to dress her for the big day.
The honeymoon, however, may prove to be more problematic, as there are few places Sophie hasn’t travelled to in her hosting roles on Luxury Escapes and The Great Outdoors, including some of the most romantic locations in the world like the Maldives, Fiji, and Europe.
“I’m in a really beautiful spot in my life right now,” she beamed.
“I’m very grateful for it.”
