While joining MasterChef Australia was a dream come true for Dot McHugh, in the back of her mind, she also had a wedding to plan!
It was just over a month until her special day with her now-wife, Katie, when she was given her white apron.
Speaking exclusively with New Idea about her nuptials, Dot said they celebrated with 50 of their closest family and friends.
“We wanted to keep it really small and intimate and just feel really special,” she shared.
They met while Dot, who was born in New Zealand, was working as a senior graphic designer in London.
They decided to celebrate in style with a “classic Sydney wedding” and held their ceremony in McKell Park in Darling Point.
Everyone then enjoyed canapés and cocktails before they were transported to St Siandra by boat.
Both lovers of food, they both tried a plethora of restaurants in the heart of the city before Dot even auditioned. They also made sure that their vows were ready before she flew to Melbourne as part of the show’s initial Top 40.
Describing herself as the “creative one” in the relationship, Dot ideally wanted to focus on finer details, such as the menu styling and name tags, when she wasn’t filming.
However, this didn’t always come to fruition, so she passed those duties over to her wife, whom she contacted daily with details.
“It kind of also showed that she is the right person for me and that we got through that all together. So it was chaos, but it was fun,” Dot reflected.
While their wedding fell in one of the show’s filming breaks over Christmas and New Year’s, she wanted to soak it all up.
So she mentally put the competition on pause, which wasn’t easy.
“It was definitely hard to switch off,” she admitted.
“At that stage, everything is inspiration. Even the cocktail. You’re thinking, ‘Oh, can I serve that as a dessert?’ I just kind of took it as some research and development by wedding day, I suppose.”
Given that she is in a bubble with the other contestants, she even wondered if she could have invited them to her wedding!
Despite all competing for the $250,000 prize and show title, the 31-year-old said everyone became a “family”.
While Dot and Katie had to cancel their honeymoon due to the show’s schedule, now that filming is over, they’re hoping to travel at the end of the year and secure a home.
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