The best man at Brittany Higgins‘ lavish French-themed wedding used his speech to crack jokes about David Sharaz’s first marriage and Lisa Wilkinson‘s Logies disaster.
Ms Higgins married her long-term boyfriend in front of about 80 guests at The Valley Estate on Saturday afternoon – a sprawling luxury estate on the Gold Coast which was rumoured to have cost more than $100,000.
Following an intimate chapel ceremony, guests enjoyed a European-inspired dinner, Mr Sharaz’s sister performed a musical number, Édith Piaf’s 1945 song ‘La vie en rose’ was played, and Ms Higgins shared a dance with her father.
Cheers erupted when the speeches began, with words from parents, the groom, and the maid of honour Emma Webster, who affectionately dubbed Mr Sharaz ‘bridezilla’.
Daily Mail Australia understands there was laughter and when the best man and MC, Alan Horner, jokingly said that Wilkinson – who wasn’t invited – passed on her apologies not attending, but was concerned that she might make a speech.
However, it is further understood the room fell silent when he offered a poorly-timed quip about how he wasn’t invited to the groom’s first wedding to Alexandra Craig in 2018.
Pictured: The bridal table while Brittany Higgins’ father delivered his speech (right, with his partner Kellie Jago)
The wedding party is pictured, including best man Alan Horner (back row, centre, with a moustache). Maid of honour Emma Webster is second from the left. David Sharaz’s sister is standing directly behind him
Mr Sharaz married political advisor Alexandra Craig at Canberra’s Yarralumla Brickworks in 2018, but the couple filed for divorce a few years later.
Ms Craig didn’t comment on her ex-husband’s nuptials on Saturday, instead posting a photo of her excursion to a frozen yogurt franchise called Yogurberry.
The groom’s hands shook uncontrollably while delivering his vows during the ceremony on Saturday, but he was much more composed during his speech after dinner.
He said Ms Higgins was the love of his life and that she looked beautiful in her designer gown.
However, his address ended with a bizarre confession about how he put the speech together the night before while watching a movie, and never finished writing it.
Following an intimate chapel ceremony featuring a string quartet playing Vivaldi and Taylor Swift’s ‘Love Story’, the newlyweds made their way into the reception hall, hand-in-hand, to present themselves as husband and wife for the very first time.
Despite reports claiming helicopter noise delayed the ceremony by 45 minutes, it is understood everything ran on time and there were no lengthy delays.
Lisa Wilkinson is pictured delivering her Logies speech in 2022, which caused Bruce Lehrmann’s rape trial to be delayed
David Sharaz is pictured before the wedding ceremony on Saturday afternoon
Brittany Higgins shared a dance with her father, Matthew Higgins, at the reception on Saturday
Guests were given two choices for entrées: stracciatella with prosciutto and melon, dehydrated olives and a balsamic reduction; or split prawns with seaweed butter and foraged sea herbs.
Main meals comprised of chicken breast with potato galette, confit tomato and shallot salsa; or beef sirloin with potato puree, mushrooms and black garlic jus – all served with roasted potatoes and a rocket salad.
Dessert was a selection of popcorn snickers bars with salted peanuts and caramel popcorn, along with lemon myrtle meringue tart with whipped creme fraiche.
Guests said the venue was extravagant, but the event itself wasn’t over the top or cheesy – the couple chose against splashing out several thousand dollars extra for a champagne stack or an oyster bar offered by the venue.
The general feeling was that the wedding was like a new start for the happy couple following a tumultuous few years, after they were thrust into the spotlight when Ms Higgins went public with her rape allegations.
Ms Higgins said her former colleague Bruce Lehrmann raped her in Parliament House when they were both junior political staffers in 2019.
He had denied it, but in April a Federal Court judge found, on a balance of probabilities, that Ms Higgins was raped.
Pictured: The menu at Brittany Higgins and David Sharaz’s wedding on the Gold Coast
Pictured: Guests making their way into the chapel on Saturday afternoon, before the ceremony
Pictured: Brittany Higgins and David Sharaz getting married on Saturday
On Friday, one day before Ms Higgins tied the knot with Mr Sharaz, Lehrmann filed an appeal to overturn the judgement.
However, there was no mention of the assault or subsequent defamation cases brought on by Ms Higgins’ former boss, Senator Linda Reynolds, throughout the day on Saturday.
In December last year, Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz bought a chateau in southern France with the $2.4million she was awarded from the Commonwealth as compensation for the way her rape allegations were handled.
It is believed they permanently relocated to get away from their celebrity status in Australia.
Ms Higgins’ wedding date was revealed in the WA Supreme Court last week amid Senator Reynolds’ defamation case against her over social media posts which she claims damaged her reputation.
Outside court last week, Ms Reynolds’ lawyer Martin Bennett said he made an application to get a copy of documentation relating to a trust account in Ms Higgins’ name.
The application will try to determine who the trustee is and who to sue in the event Ms Higgins says she cannot pay damages, if she loses the case.
Last month, Mr Sharaz bowed out of Ms Reynolds’ defamation action against him because he could not afford it.
He has been ordered to pay Ms Reynolds’ legal fees. If he declares bankruptcy, he may not be able to return to France.
After the judgement in April, Ms Higgins released a statement on Instagram saying she felt vindicated: ‘I was raped. No judgment was ever going to change this truth.’
She added: ‘I lived with the shame, humiliation, and fear of what telling my story would mean for my life and career, like so many other victim-survivors.’