PHOTO: Radio shock jock Kyle Sandilands and long-time partner Tegan Kynaston married on Saturday
According to realestate.com.au Neighbours feared the Swifts mansion might turn into a noisy party venue and so it came to pass that the famous Sydney property hosted the celebrity wedding of the year.
Radio shock jock Kyle Sandilands and long-time partner Tegan Kynaston married on Saturday at the renowned heritage-listed Victorian Gothic Revival mansion located in the exclusive Eastern Suburbs locale of Darling Point.
The original home was completed in 1877 and was extensively renovated in 1997.
By most estimates it is worth north of $100m, to be one of the most valuable homes in Australia.
Aerial view of “Swifts”. Picture: Noel Kessel
Last year Swifts mansion owner Dr Shane Moran, of the Moran aged care empire, signalled plans to rent out the celebrated venue for top-end events in order to help pay for the maintenance of the home and its grounds, which likely runs into the millions of dollars annually.
It’s one of the few Sydney grand Victorian mansions still used as a family home.
Radio star Sandilands’ wedding bill came in at around $1m, a significant portion of which surely went towards hiring the venue.
The Main entrance to the Morans home, Swifts Mansion, in Darling Point, Sydney
The Billiard room.
The home is one of Sydney’s grandest and most expensive.
Supplied photos from Kyle Sandilands and Tegan Kynaston’s lavish wedding. 29 April 2023. Picture: Supplied
Guests included Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, NSW Premier Chris Minns, Jeff and Suzee Fenech, Guy Sebastian, pop star Samantha Jade and Kings Cross identity John Ibrahim, ex-NRL star Beau Ryan and Karl Stefanovic and Jasmine Yarbrough.
The event continued a tradition of almost 150 years of top end socialite shindigs at the home, which was originally built by beer baron Sir Robert Lucas Lucas-Tooth in 1882 and at one stage was owned by the Roman Catholic Church.
Swifts has occasionally hosted open weekends.
House keeper Alina Garces at The Swifts Mansion. Picture: Justin Lloyd
The home dates back almost 150 years. Picture: Justin Lloyd
Sandilands’ wedding is said to have cost around $1m. Picture: Supplied
The ballroom.
Sitting room circa 1900.
So indulgent was the original build, the home has over 50 rooms and is said to have at one stage boasted an opium den.
“There are so many interesting rooms. There is a smoking room and the remains of an old opium den, which traces back to when opium was legal,” Dr Moran said.
The opium den is a type of sitting room and is known as the Moorish Smoking Room or the Moroccan room, where the depressant drug would have been smoked many years ago.
According to reports, aspects of the room at times remained shrouded in secrecy and the hand painted decor in the room was rediscovered during the home’s renovation. It features detailed Oriental exoticism in its designs and chattels from that part of the world. It is believed to be the only room of its kind in Australia.
Yvette Moran and Kerry Jones, of the Moran family, in the Moroccan room at Swifts mansion in Darling Point, eastern Sydney, NSW.