How Rebecca Gibney and her husband Richard Bell make their decades-long marriage work

Historically marriages in the entertainment industry look loved-up on the outside, but as we know, many don’t make it past three years.

However, for few individuals in the limelight, their marriages have only grown stronger within the backdrop of their high-profile careers.

One such celebrity is iconic actor Rebecca Gibney.

The 57-year-old will celebrate twenty years of marriage to her husband, Richard Bell, in November, and it seems like they are still deeply in love.

How did Rebecca Gibney meet her husband?

Rebecca met the production designer after she divorced her first husband, Irwin Thomas, when they crossed paths on the set of Magda Szubanski’s television movie, Dog Woman.

The two kicked it off and soon tied the knot in 2001 on a beach in Thailand.

“I met my second husband, Richard Bell when I was 35,” the Back to The Rafters star told the Sydney Morning Herald.

“I had dealt with my past and in walks this beautiful, tall New Zealander who happened to live on the same street as me when I was five. We met in 1999, got together in 2000 and married in 2001 and have been happy ever since.”

Their shared history is as heartwarming as love stories can be, and we can imagine how shocked they were to discover their unique childhood roots.

Rebecca shared this sweet picture to commemorate her upcoming anniversary.

(Image: Instagram)

What does Rebecca Gibney’s husband do for a living?

As mentioned, Richard also works in show business, and according to his IMDB, he is best known for his work on Crash Zone (1999), Garbo (1992), and The Interview (1998) as a production designer.

He has also worked with his wife on the show Wanted as a writer from 2016-2018.

Does Rebecca Gibney share children with her husband?

The couple share their 17-year-old son Zachary.

In August 2021, Rebecca told The Sydney Morning Herald that he reminded her of her father when he was born.

“There was a moment in hospital when we locked eyes, and I saw my father. I still see him in him sometimes, and I am like, ‘Oh my god, it’s my dad.’ Zachary is confident, strong and secure and knows we love him. I promised to give him the life my father never had,” she told the publication.

Rebecca with her husband and son, Zac at the beach.

(Image: Instagram)

What has Rebecca Gibney shared about her marriage over the years?

In anticipation of their 20-year-anniversary, Rebecca posted a tribute dedicated to Richard on her Instagram.

“When you find old pics of when you met your husband, and it makes you go all gooey inside. I’m a lucky woman. 20 years married in November to the kindest (clearly incredibly handsome) gentle giant on the planet. Love you big R,” she penned.

She also accompanied the caption with a gorgeous throwback photo from their life together, as pictured above.

In 2017, the Celebrity MasterChef star told Yahoo that “respect” is key to their lasting relationship, as well as regular date nights.

“You must respect each other, it’s having complete and utter respect above all else and obviously love and being willing to compromise which is what we’ve always done,” Rebecca said.

“We are quite lucky because we work together a lot, so we are on the road a lot, and quite often, we’ll find ourselves in beautiful hotels or amazing places for dinner, so it’s easy to keep the romance alive.”

“My rock, he’s my everything.”

(Image: Getty)

She sweetly added: “My rock, he’s my everything.”

During the same year, she told The New Zealand Women’s Weekly that their each other’s biggest cheer squad.

“He gets me utterly, and we’re each other’s biggest fans. It doesn’t mean we don’t have issues, but we always work through them because I can’t imagine growing old with anyone else. He’s my rock, and I think I’m his,” she told the publication.

In 2018, she told The New Daily that “compromise” is integral to the happiness of their marriage.

“I’m very blessed in that my husband is my best friend, but we’re not co-dependent. We depend on each other, but we’re both strong individuals who happen to love hanging out together.”