Like many other people, Jonathan Van Ness closed out 2020 with an emotional Instagram post that highlighted his gratitude for what he has amidst a difficult year.
But this post contained a revelation: The Queer Eye star and one of today's modern day saints has officially tied the knot.
"Thank you universe for allowing me to be here & thanks to everyone who has supported me. 2020 was a year unlike any other," Van Ness wrote. "I got to campaign & get more involved politically. I finished my tour in Australia & NZ for what I didn't know would be my last standup show for who knows how long."
And then he dropped the news: "I got married to my best friend & have a loving partner to continue building my life with."
Van Ness has long been a guiding light amidst dark times. His monologues on Queer Eye were full of platitudes about self-love and self-expression, and they earned many fans and many tears. He's also open about his own journey to reaching the self-acceptance that allows him to give so much deep love to others.
Earlier this year he came out as nonbinary, though he stated a preference for he/him pronouns. He's also broken barriers on the red carpet with his gender-fluid fashion. He's also a political activist and advocate. His podcast, Getting Curious With Jonathan Van Ness, covers topics from climate change to voter suppression. And he's been open about his own struggles with abuse, drug addiction, and HIV+, which he detailed in his memoir, Over the Top: A Raw Journey to Self-Love, released in October 2019.
So who is the lucky man who gets to spend his life with JVN? His name is Mark Peacock (IG: @marklondon). He seems to be a former model — he was once on the cover of Men's Health UK—and is London born. Not much more information is available about his backstory, but we do know that he and Van Ness sound like a perfect match.
In a second Instagram post, Van Ness detailed the dawn of their relationship. "We went on a date in London, which turned into more dates whilst I was on comedy tour," he wrote.
"At the end of that time, I was taking my mom, aunt, and friends on a mini break to Amsterdam. I wanted [Mark] to come with, but it was...a bit intense to ask [him] to come after a couple weeks worth's of dates to come meet my mom and friends on a mini break? Maybe so, but something about Mark felt different, and I'm quite sure he felt the same. Here's some of my favorite moments together, and here's to making many more. Thanks so much for your support and love for us!!" he wrote.
For his part, Mark seems just as excited as JVN. In his own gushy Instagram caption, Peacock wrote, "I left London and moved across the Atlantic, got dressed up for numerous seriously hilarious Zoom quizzes, rediscovered a love for gardening, learned to drive on the left, got married to my soulmate and one true love, Jonathan, and adopted a little Jack Russell called Pablo and entered a family with four amazing cats."
So how did the wedding go down?
"Surprise we got married in the backyard of a house we rented over the summer with a socially distanced judge & a photographer," Van Ness wrote on Twitter last week. "Our parents watched over FaceTime. Love my Mark & we're so happy to share this news. Happy New Year!" While it's not necessarily the big Queer Eye-team-planned blowout we might've expected, it does sound like the perfect quarantine ceremony.
While the marriage was kept secret, it seems Van Ness did share the joy with his fellow Queer Eye compatriots. "Yay!! That was a hard secret to keep!! Love you Mark and Johnny," wrote Queer Eye's Bobby Berk in a comment.
Karamo Brown wrote, "Yay! We can finally celebrate it publicly!! So happy for you!!!!!! One of the most Beautiful couples in the world. Love you & Happy New year @jvn."
Antoni Porowski also left a comment on Van Ness's post, though he didn't have much to say about the wedding. "Wait, you got a dog?" was all he wrote. Porowski and Van Ness briefly fueled dating rumours when they posted several romantic photos that were clearly a joke, though fans couldn't help but fantasize about the potential Queer Eye romance. Alas, Jantoni weren't meant to be; but hey, at least that means that Antoni is still (maybe) single.
In his own reflective Instagram post, Peacock wrote, "2020 brought so much pain and sorrow for folks that's in so many ways heartbreaking to see but I sure do hope some of the love I've found this year can make its way into the world in 2021, 2020 might almost be over but it sure won't be be forgotten. 2021, I'm ready for you."
May we all be as prepared for 2021 as Jonathan Van Ness's newly minted husband.