Heritage home 7 Vacy Hall_020003

There are two great love stories in Graham Higgins’ life: one of young love lost and found again, the other a tale of slow-burning passion that led him to his happy place. The leading lady in the first is Nicky Hayward-Wright, Graham’s partner. Nicky and Graham dated in their university days, but both recognised that life was calling and they were too young to be so serious about their relationship.

Heritage home 9

They went their separate ways out into the world — Graham’s career taking him into myriad industries: recruitment, politics, journalism, management and hospitality. Nicky travelled, and spent time in the United Kingdom and the United States, ultimately landing in Sydney, and later Melbourne as a knowledge manager and university lecturer. Both married others, each welcomed kids into the world. More than three decades later, and both single again, it was pure chance, or perhaps fate, that reconnected them.

Heritage home 3 Heritage home 2

“I was out of town and had forgotten my medication,” Graham explains. “I decided to get a script while I was away and discovered the doctor I visited shared an office with Nicky’s brother’s dental practice. I mentioned to him that I’d love to catch up, and her brother interpreted that as ‘I’d love to catch up with Nicky’, so he passed my number onto her. Then she was a big scaredy cat and sat on it for about three months.”

Heritage home 8

“I was quite happy,” Nicky continues, “having my own space and not looking for anything. One day I thought, ‘I’ll just ring him to see, after all these years, what he’s doing with himself’. I wasn’t looking for a relationship.”

However, after Graham “came up with an excuse to fly to Melbourne” and arranged to meet with Nicky in person, everything changed. “The flame of romance was rekindled,” Graham recalls. “We’ve always liked each other. We were both very interested.”

Heritage home 4 Heritage home 5

Vacy Hall, a grand old homestead in Toowoomba, Queensland, is Graham’s other great love. He’d bought the heritage-listed property, which was built in 1899 by a wealthy pastoralist for his daughter and her new husband, many years earlier and was busy restoring and redecorating it as an upscale B&B.

The complete story was originally published in Australian Country issue 19.6. Click here to subscribe to our magazine. 

Click here for more home and interior stories.

Words Tamara Simoneau
Photography Anastasia Kariofyllidis

More Like This

Douglas Blain

The Extraordinary Journey of Douglas Blain: Preserving the Past with Passion

Douglas Blain’s remarkable life has been devoted to rescuing old buildings and turning them into boutique hotels.

Outback Aussie Tours

Exploring Queensland’s Heartland with Outback Aussie Tours

Alan and Sue Smith, owners of Outback Aussie Tours have been showing Australian Country around the paddocks of Rosebank station.

Montville Mist Springwater

The Collins’ Montville Mist Springwater Success

Alli and Peter Collins juggle raising a family and running, Montville Mist Springwater from their home in Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.

Paper Pocket Australiana

Our Top 10 Favourite Calendars and Diaries to Kick Start Your 2024

Discover Australia’s favourite range of 2024 Calendars and Diaries from Paper Pocket. Keep track of your year, organise your appointments, plan your […]

Date & Ginger Bundt Cake

Date & Ginger Bundt Cake Recipe

This date and ginger bundt cake is an adaptation of my mum’s much-loved sticky date pudding recipe.

Visitors Paradise Home

Turning a 1929 Home into a Visitors Paradise

Aussie wildlife and mushroom foragers are among the many visitors to Sue and Tony Johnson’s paradise home in South Australia’s Adelaide Hills.

Heritage Home Renovation

A Heritage Home Renovation Back to the Origins

After almost three decades of renovations, Darren and Sue Turner have returned their 111-year-old home to what it once was.

Kiama

Seduced by Simplicity: A Kiama Transformation

Michael and Michele Bell turned a Kiama beach house from the sixties into a stunning seaside home that’s too good to leave.

Follow Us on Instagram