If your love life was an underwear drawer, then a May/December romance would probably be those flesh colored undies with the built in tummy panel you’d be embarrassed for the world to see.
You never pictured yourself wearing them, yet they’re weirdly alluring and just fit into your life. Let’s just say that in the world of underwear drawers, they are a little taboo.
The same can be said for high profile couples with substantial age gaps who step into the media arena, where the judgment is as swift and as it is brutal.
When Rupert Murdoch, 84, and Jerry Hall, 59, recently announced their engagement the world, mature bunch that we are, met the news with a resounding and encouraging “eeeewww”. The general consensus was that Hall was willing to put up with a lot in order to secure a pretty substantial payday, whether or not they were really in love never seemed to enter into the discussion.
Recently, our screens have been filled with My Kitchen Rules’ Queensland couple Cheryl and Matt, cleverly dubbed ‘the cougar couple’ because of their significant age difference. Cheryl is 50, while Matt is 26, and while the sprawling age gap doesn’t seem to bother the fun loving couple, online commentators had a pretty big problem with it.
I won’t repeat the worst of their words here, they don’t deserve that oxygen, but it’s safe to say general feeling that resonated though the comments was “I could never, ever do that.”
And then, just when you thought age gaps would never have their sexy day in the sun, along comes a couple that have quickly blown that theory out of the water.
I’m talking about the utter perfection that is Sarah Paulson and Holland Taylor.
Back in December 2015, actress Holland Taylor confirmed she was indeed in a relationship and, although she did not name names, the lucky lady was widely believed to be fellow actress, Sarah Paulson.
And now, the delightful truth has officially been confirmed.
“What I can say absolutely is that I am in love, and that person happens to be Holland Taylor,” American Horror Story actress Paulson said recently.
It’s a relationship pairing that’s been met with utter delight and excitement by those of us that sit behind computer screens and make tribute videos to the love lives of celebrities we’ll never meet.
What? It’s called ‘shipping’, it’s perfectly normal and the person next to you at work is probably doing it right now.
Even their substantial age gap, Taylor is 72 and Paulson is 40, is not enough to deter the fandom. In fact, it’s adding to it, because when Paulson talks about the years between them, it makes a May/December romance something you definitely want to pull out of the underwear drawer.
“There’s a poignancy to being with someone older,” she told The New York Times. “I think there’s a greater appreciation of time and what you have together and what’s important.
“It can make the little things seem very small.
“It puts a kind of sharp light mixed with a sort of diffused light on something. I can’t say it any other way than there’s a poignancy to it, and a heightened sense of time and the value of time.”
You said it, Sarah. If relationship age gaps really are that sexy, I can see why people are now so eager to sign up.
Watch: The Mamamia Team tell us what was the last text they sent their partner.
Top Comments
Surprised no one has mentioned "the rule" - half of youngest partner's age plus 7 less than or equal to oldest and it's ok. It starts not to make sense below 15/16 and also to run out of steam above 80 but otherwise works pretty well
My husband is 22 years older, I am 34 and he is 56. I honestly don't notice the age difference. We get questioned on it all the time and it doesn't bother me at all! I've even had some people question how is my 'Dad' by accident. We both just laugh. Love is what it is, and we are both happy. People can by so stereotypical though. I'm not a gold digger or trophy wife. I have my own career and we earn as much money as each other. We just simply love each other.