Love, loss & letting go WILHELMINA'S PINCH-ME MOMENTS

After grieving her old life, the broadcaster’s started anew business and is excited for what lies ahead

- Fleur Guthrie

On New Year’s Eve as the clocked ticked over to midnight, Wilhelmina Shrimpton counted down with friends, enjoyed a toast and later, quietly, had a cry.

It was the realisation of making it through the hardest year of her life – where she “met both the saddest and happiest versions of herself”, coupled with an appreciation of coming out the other side.

“If you had said to me at the start of 2023, ‘So, this is what’s going to happen…’ I would have said, ‘You’re insane!’” smiles the award-winning journalist.

“Within eight months, I lost my job, separated from my husband, went to India to work, launched my own business, met someone special and had to find a new place to live. Everything that could’ve changed, changed. They say variety is the spice of life. Well, I’ve been keeping it pretty spicy lately!”

As Wilhelmina welcomes the Weekly team into her Auckland home, her new partner, rugby referee Ben O’Keeffe, arrives at the same time, back from a run in the muggy heat.

While they’re not ready to share all the details of their budding relationship, she does reveal it stemmed from “a simple follow” on Instagram, before they exchanged messages and went on a first date.

“We hadn’t met each other before, but we kind of knew each other existed [through Ben’s younger brother, Newshub presenter Michael O’Keeffe],” grins the 33-year-old. “All I can say is that we’re both really, really happy.”