Savage Garden’s Darren Hayes reveals it was ‘love at first sight’ when he met her husband

Darren Hayes has revealed how he fell in love with her husband the moment he laid eyes on him.

The former Savage Garden singer first met British screenwriter Richard Cullen online in 2004, and when the pair went on their first date, he was furious.

“We met on the steps of the University of Westminster in London, where he was teaching. It was love at first sight,” the 50-year-old told the Sydney Morning Herald.

“He’s an Englishman with a nice northern accent. My friends call him gay mother Teresa because he’s so perfect.

Darren then called Richard, “the funniest person in the room” who is happy to let him “shine in public, while in private he is my lawyer”.

Elsewhere in the interview, Darren shared how he struggled to come out as gay for the first time.

“We met on the steps of the University of Westminster in London, where he was teaching. It was love at first sight,” the 50-year-old told the Sydney Morning Herald. ‘He’s an Englishman with a nice northern accent. My friends call him gay Mother Teresa because he’s so perfect’

By his side: Darren then called Richard, ‘the funniest person in the room’ who is happy to let him ‘shine in public, while in private he is my lawyer’

“My coming out experience was shrouded in shame. While recording Savage Garden’s debut album, I had a personality crisis,” he said.

Darren has previously said that he fears making public displays of affection with Richard due to the stigma that still exists around same-sex relationships.

In 2016, Darren called on Malcolm Turnbull to take action to support same-sex marriage in the aftermath of the Orlando massacre.

Difficult: Elsewhere in the interview, Darren shared how he struggled to come out as gay for the first time. “My coming out experience was shrouded in shame. While recording the first Savage Garden record, I had a personality crisis,” he said.

The singer penned a poignant open letter to the then Prime Minister in which he explained how his battle with anxiety and self-hatred almost cost him his life.

He said being able to marry Richard in California in 2013, five years after attending a civil partnership ceremony in London, saved him.

“I can tell you firsthand – being able to marry the person I love and live in countries where my marriage is recognized – probably saved my life,” he wrote.

Stigma: Darren has previously said he fears making public displays of affection with Richard due to the stigma that still exists around same-sex relationships

“I struggled tremendously with anxiety and depression related in part to my sexuality and grew up at a time when being gay felt like a death sentence.

“I was bullied, tormented and eventually convinced myself that the person my mother gave birth to was something to be ashamed of.

“I buried my sense of self and, in turn, developed a sense of self-hatred and shame that almost cost me my life.”

“I struggled tremendously with anxiety and depression related in part to my sexuality and grew up in a time when being gay felt like a death sentence,” he said.

He said he was able to survive thanks to therapy and support from family and friends.

‘I survived. I learned to accept who I was despite living in a world that didn’t seem acceptable to me,” he said.

Savage Garden, consisting of Darren and guitarist Daniel Jones, formed in 1993 and produced a host of No. 1 hits like To the Moon and Back and Truly Madly Deeply.

The band called him in 2001. Darren pursued a solo career while Daniel married former Hi-5 star Kathleen De Leon.

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Memories: Savage Garden, made up of Darren and guitarist Daniel Jones (right), formed in 1993 and produced a host of No. 1 hits like To the Moon and Back and The Animal Song