MY HUSBAND FOR ME!

A dating site proved to be spot on

When a woman matched with Nelson-born comedian Ben Caldwell on a dating site seven years ago, it wasn’t because she wanted romance. Instead, she suggested he meet her friend Amberly!

“She picked up that Ben was really similar to me and he ticked a few boxes on my dream-man list, recalls Masterton-born Amberly, 29, a comedienne. “He was ginger, funny and most importantly, he likes Billy Connolly.”

She joined the website to check out her potential match.

“I hadn’t been interested in dating before that because my children were my only focus,” tells Amberly. “But I realised really quickly how kind, caring and giving Ben is.”

The devoted mum had three young kids in her care, having taken over their custody from a family member. Amberly made sure Ben knew that if they dated, she came as a full package.

“It didn’t worry me,” says Ben, 32, who works in customer service. “There wasn’t a day we weren’t in contact by text, messenger or phone call, but I didn’t think it would lead to where we are now so fast.”

Amberly’s children were equally smitten. “They embraced Ben full force and the oldest said ‘I love you’ to him before I did!” she tells. “They made the natural progression to calling him Dad occasionally, which became a permanent thing when I got pregnant with our eldest biological child.”

The couple had three babies together after tying the knot in 2016, and while they say life is busy and chaotic, they agree it makes for great comedy-show content.

“We’ve had setbacks, but we try to find the positives in it all and something to laugh about,” says Amberly.