THE STORY OF US
THE GOGGLEBOXERS ON LIFE, LOVE AND A FULL HOUSE
They’re one of our favourite – and biggest – TV families. But as far as Gogglebox stars Stacey and Grant Jackson are concerned, there’s always room for more on the couch.
The laid-back parents of six, who became grandparents in their mid-thirties, love opening the door to their home. And that’s how it’s always been for the high-school sweethearts.
“We definitely wouldn’t have it any other way,” says Stacey with a smile. “I love having family and friends around. These days, we always seem to have 12 to 14 people at the dinner table – we just keep adding to the table, and that’s really cool.”
Doting parents to 21-year-old Corey – now a dad himself – Britney, 18, Jesse, 14, Chase, 11, Kane, 9, and Nate, 7, the couple also cherish being grandparents.
“It’s been amazing,” says Stacey. “We’re young enough to really enjoy it and run around with them. We’ve been blessed.”
Both 38, Stacey and Grant were teenagers when they met at a local basketball stadium in their hometown of Sydney.
“I was playing basketball and Grant was watching,” says Stacey. “I thought he was pretty cute sitting up in the grandstand.”
To which Grant adds with a laugh: “What I first noticed about Stacey was her running style, as it was a bit strange! Then I asked one of the girls I’d previously gone to school with to go up and tell her that I liked her. That was it – that’s how it all started.”
Indeed, the still sportsmad couple have been inseparable ever since.
“He’s my best friend,” says Stacey, adding thoughtfully: “It hasn’t always been easy – there have been hard times and good times. But it just works, and he makes me happy.”
Grant agrees, saying: “We complement each other and we know how each other thinks.”
That’s not to say, though, that it was easy becoming parents to firstborn Corey when Stacey was just 16 and Grant was 17. Far from it, reveals Stacey: “I wouldn’t swap him, or our situation, for the world, but it was so hard.”
“Everything was, emotionally and financially,” agrees Grant. “Our parents were pretty shocked, as you’d expect, but we’ve always had good support.”
In September, 1999, the couple married at their local church, celebrating at a nearby reception with their family and friends.
“It wasn’t too extravagant like some weddings, but it was really great,” says Stacey.
“It was actually my first wedding ever – my own!” says Grant, adding, “and Stacey looked beautiful”.
With Stacey now working in sales and Grant as a registered nurse, do the couple ever find time just for the two of them?
“We always try to, even when things are crazy busy, and that makes a big difference,” says Stacey. “We also have plans to venture a little further one day and explore a bit of the world, but it may be quite an expensive trip if all the kids come!”
As for becoming Goggleboxers alongside their happy clan, Stacey and Grant are relishing their time in the spotlight: “We’re really enjoying it,” says Stacey, “and we get to do it with our family, which is a very special thing”.