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Why Asher Keddie’s baby bump is such big news

The proud display was a bit out of character for a notoriously private Keddie who historically has always been quite coy about the subject of motherhood.
Asher Keddie Vincent Fantauzzo

The Party Tricks star glowed as she walked the red carpet on Wednesday night in a form fitting black gown that gave the public their first glimpse of her rather large baby bump.

The 40-year-old Gold Logie winner was accompanied to the event by her artist husband Vincent Fantauzzo whom she married in Fiji in April.

The proud display was a bit out of character for a notoriously private Keddie who historically has always been quite coy about the subject of motherhood.

While Asher helps to raise Fantauzzo’s four-year-old son, Luca, from a previous relationship, the child will be the first for the actress who opened up to The Weekly back in 2011 to say she wasn’t sure if kids were in her future.

At the time when the inevitable question of children came up, particularly queries as to why she hadn’t had any yet, the actress was refreshingly frank in her response.

“Why are we [women] only considered successful if we can juggle family and a demanding career?”  said Keddie.

“I admire people who can do it, don’t get me wrong. But I feel successful not doing it as well. I don’t think, ‘Oh gosh, I won’t be quite there and I won’t be successful as I want to be unless I’m juggling a couple of kids, a marriage and a career.'”

And who did Keddie feel were the biggest probers about procreation questions?

“It’s usually women who ask me the question, too, in a way that I find offensive,” said Keddie. “Which is interesting,” she added.

At the time of the interview Keddie was in the midst of Offspring‘s success, she had just started playing media maven Ita Butorse in TV mini-series, Paper Giants and was married to actor and singer Jay Bowen, whom she married in 2007 but split from in late 2011. So, with a lot on the agenda the actress discussed feeling conflicted about whether she was ready to bring babies into the mix.

“It not that I don’t think I can do it. It’s not that. It’s that I don’t know. I just don’t know. And that goes back to… there is a part of me that is incredibly selfish. And there is a part of me that is incradabliy giving as well. I do feel really generous, but I know that there’s a side of me that informs me of who I truly am and that is what leads me to the ‘I don’t know’ part.”

Fast forward three years and Asher seems delighted with the prospect of becoming a mum.

“It’s so exciting, we’re so thrilled,” she told The Sydney Morning Herald of her pregnancy on the red carpet at Wednesday’s event.

Adding, “I feel fantastic, tonight. It’s been a little up and down but I’m just like everybody else I think. The happiness is outweighing everything else I think.”

Congratulations Asher, we couldn’t be more delighted for you.

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