Jacinda Ardern’s wedding prep has officially kicked off in a predictably Covid-safe manner.
The former New Zealand prime minister spent Friday morning primping and preening ahead of her long-awaited wedding to TV fisherman fiancé Clarke Gayford at Craggy Range Winery tomorrow.
Jacinda, 43, was joined by her mother Laurell Ardern and friends at Sen Nails & Beauty in the heart of Havelock North, in Hawke’s Bay on the east coast of New Zealand’s North Island.
She did her best to disguise herself during her manicure – wearing a straw hat and a surgical facemask.
Jacinda Ardern (pictured) spent Friday morning primping and preening ahead of her long-awaited wedding to TV fisherman fiance Clarke Gayford at Craggy Range Winery (pictured below) tomorrow
Jacinda Ardern and fiancé, the high-profile Kiwi TV fisherman Clarke Gayford, are due to tie the knot this Saturday
‘Jacinda and her mother were the only two people in the whole salon wearing masks,’ a witness who spotted the pair said.
‘Clearly the pandemic isn’t over for the Queen of lockdowns.’
Dressed in a casual black flowy dress, Ardern was later spied being escorted to a back exit of the salon before making a mad dash to an awaiting vehicle.
On Wednesday, Ardern reportedly held her hen’s do with a dozen girlfriends at the nearby Hastings Distillers, a boutique bar known for its ‘organic artisan spirits and liqueurs’.
The former New Zealand Prime Minister did her best to disguise herself during her manicure – wearing a straw hat and a surgical facemask (her mother Laurell is pictured right)
The stunning $25,000-per-night grounds of Craggy Range Winery where the former New Zealand prime minister will wed fiance Clarke Gayford on Saturday
The former Labour Party leader is set to tie the knot at the $25,000-a-night venue on Saturday.
She was forced to postpone her wedding in 2022 because her government put in place Covid-19 restrictions which reduced gathering sizes to 100.
In a bizarre twist, Ardern’s longtime friend and fellow Labour Party MP Kieran McAnulty has also set this weekend aside to marry his fiancée Gia Garrick, former press secretary to prime ministers Ardern and Chris Hipkins.
According to a source, despite Mr McAnulty securing his wedding months date months in advance, many mutual friends have since accepted invites to Ardern and Mr Clarke’s big day.
Mr McAnulty and Ms Garrick will say I do at Orua Sea Grotto overlooking Hot Water Beach in The Coromandel on Saturday.
Ardern, 42, has long been a fan of the Craggy Range Winery.
In 2020 she was pictured alongside the team of Michelin star chefs at the winery’s two-hatted restaurant.
‘Honoured to have had Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern dine with us last night,’ the venue said in a photo caption.
‘Thank you for coming and supporting Hawke’s Bay!’
The globally renowned winery sits between the stunning Te Mata Peak and the Tukituki River, and was dubbed the world’s most Instagrammable vineyard in 2021.
Craggy Range Winery sits between the stunning Te Mata Peak and the Tukituki River, and was dubbed the world’s most Instagrammable vineyard in 2021 (pictured)
The venue offers a marquee (pictured) for large events, with a minimum spend of $25,000
The picturesque venue provides on-site accommodation for up to 30 guests that must be booked when hosting weddings.
Nestled amongst vines, Craggy Range offers an impressive wedding package for couples including an intimate sit down function at the winery restaurant for 70.
Alternatively, they offer a marquee for large events, with a minimum spend of $25,000.
Ardern, 43, and Mr Gayford, 47, first met at an awards ceremony in 2012, but they did not begin dating until 2014 when Mr Gayford contacted the then-Labour politician about proposed legislation in 2013.
Before dating Ardern, Mr Gayford was famous in New Zealand, with various roles in the media as a radio host, DJ and presenter.
Mr Gayford is the current host of ‘Fish of the Day,’ a series dedicated fishing in the pacific ocean, as well as ‘Moving Houses,’ a show that revolves around the process of relocating houses.
The couple share a daughter, Neve, together who was born in 2018 while Ardern was in office.
New Zealand was swept up in ‘Jacidamania’ when Ms Adern was elected Prime Minister in October 20117 – the world’s youngest leader was regularly mobbed for selfies wherever she went.
Two years later, the country was rocked by the worst terrorist attack it had ever seen when a white supremacist shooter stormed two mosques in Christchurch, killing 51 people.
Ardern, 42, has long been a fan of the vineyard, and in 2020 was pictured alongside the team of Michelin star chefs at the winery’s two-hatted restaurant
In a bizarre twist, Ardern’s longtime friend and fellow Labour Party MP Kieran McAnulty (right) has also set this weekend aside to marry his fiancée Gia Garrick
Ardern won praise around the world for her response, donning a hijab to meet survivors and victims’ family members and toughening New Zealand’s gun laws.
She drew global admiration for her response to Covid – summed up by her mantra of ‘go hard and go early’ – when she closed New Zealand’s borders after just a 100 cases.
It meant the country could emerge seven weeks later to a level of freedom that was the envy of other nations around the world and also helped shepherd in a landslide victory for the Labour party in October 2020.
But her decision to implement repeated lockdowns in the second half of the pandemic was widely judged to have hurt small business owners and damaged the Kiwi economy.
Her pursuit of more progressive reforms, covering water, the health system, resource management and Maori rights, in recent years provoked wave upon wave of domestic opposition.
By the time she announced her shock resignation in January last year, her popularity had plummeted.
Upon her resignation, she claimed she ‘no longer has enough in the tank’ after her five-year term in office.
Then, she made light of the wedding debacle and included a special shout-out to her partner in the speech, telling him: ‘And to Clarke: let’s finally get married.’
‘I am human. Politicians are human. We give all we can for as long as we can – and then it’s time. And for me, it’s time. I know what this job takes,’ she said at the time.