Dáithí Ó'Sé has been loved up with his wife Rita Talty for over a decade and they couldn't be happier. But just how did the Kerryman win over the American beauty?
Most fans know that the couple first clapped eyes on one another when Rita represented New Jersey at the Rose of Tralee festival in 2008 but here's how that fateful moment unfolded.
While Dáithí was initially struck by her beauty it was her personality that really grabbed his attention.
First meeting
He told EVOKE: 'I remember she came in and she was lovely and tanned and had a lovely red dress on and it was just her personality really, really came across.'
'Forward two years after that when we actually got together but that was the initial meeting.'
More than [Facebook] friends
Explaining how things went from platonic to more, Dáithí recounted: 'Facebook was the medium we were using. We'd message each other maybe once a month and after a while that went to once a week and then to once a day, then ten times a day.
'Then I was in America in 2010 doing a show for TG4. We were passing through New York where we'd a day off so I sent her a message and we met up and we spent two days together.'
'Then she was off for a day and we were down in Washington DC working so when we had a day off, she came down the night. Then at the end of that, I went to Florida, we were working there. The crew went home and I went back up to New York for six days. I went twice a month then and she eventually moved over, long story short.'
First date
Detailing their first date the proud Kerryman said: 'It was a very, very strange one because I landed into New York, right into the middle of Manhattan, at about half 11 at night and she was late so she got in at about half 12 at night.'
'So we ended up drinking coffee outside in the street in the middle of Manhattan. It was busy but we talking until about three or four o'clock in the morning when it got bright. We were just hanging out the following day and taking it easy and that's kind of really where it started,' he enthused.
When he knew she was the one
Asked when if knew it was the real deal, Dáithí replied: 'Looking back, I'd say we knew early enough but especially when I was going over every two or three weeks to New York and coming home, and there was a reason why I was doing that so that was probably it.'
Things didn't take long to progress as the television presenter said: 'We started going out in 2010, we got engaged in 2011 and we got married in 2012.'
How he popped the question
Remembering his sweet Stateside proposal to Rita, he said: 'It was in a place called Weehawken across the river on the New Jersey side from Manhattan so you can see all of the New York skyline.'
'The reason why I asked her there was because it was the first place I told her I loved her.' Adorable!
The wedding
The couple tied the knot in front of 300 guests and seven bridesmaids in a very American-style wedding but with plenty of Irish charm in Kerry in 2012. They swapped vows in a local church before heading to the Carlton Hotel in Tralee where the celebrations went on until 8am the next morning.
Recalling that moment Dáithí told Irish Central: 'People were saying not to look as the bride walked up, others were saying to look, so, as always, I had no plan. I didn't look and when I did see Rita I felt a lump in my throat.'
While they had the best day not everything went to plan. Dáithí had a wardrobe malfunction when he slid across the seat of his car and 'tore a hole in the arse of my trousers.' Thankfully one of the bridesmaids was handy with a needle and thread and saved the day.
Their first child
The couple welcomed their son Micheál Óg in 2014 who in a very appropriate twist of fate was born on Saint Patrick's Day. The Kerryman opened up about fatherhood in 2023 where he marvelled at the 'bananas' rate his son was growing.
'These days I book off blocks of time and weekends here and there and nothing will change that,' he told RSVP, standing firmly in his values of quality time with his loved ones.
Keeping the spark alive
For Daithi, there are two secrets to a successful marriage. 'You have to listen to each other and you need to have guy time and girl time as well as having time together,' he explained.
For Rita, it's all about the little things. She told EVOKE: 'When he brings me a coffee and I don't ask him to, or because I'm celiac if he sees something gluten-free that he thinks I might like he'll grab it. I find there are no big gestures, but it's the little things he does and that is what is important. '
Married to one of Ireland's most popular presenters
As the years move on for the Ó Sé family, Rita says its more and more important to spend time together. When asked what is the most romantic item or event that he has taken here to she says a football match!
She said: 'The most romantic thing (he does) is bring me to Kerry matches each weekend... but I love it. It's our family time together with (son) Oige.'
When asked what it is like to be married to one of the most popular presenters in the country, she added: 'I don't even think of that. I think he goes to work during the day and he could be working in an office nine to five. It doesn't click for me that he is that person until we're out and about and people are coming up to him.
'It is nice to see older people interacting with him because he has such a kind way about him that he makes them feel so special and he is genuine when talking to them. He gives them that time and has a little chat with them. And you can see how happy he is and how it makes them feel... it's not put on that's just the way he is.'
Daithí is now in the running to take over Joe Duffy's iconic Liveline slot, do you think he should get the gig? Lord knows, the premise of the show is a far cry from the Rose of Tralee!
