Nova star Kate Ritchie, 42, stocks up on boxes of booze on romantic Byron Bay holiday

Nova star Kate Ritchie recently debuted her relationship with her much younger boyfriend John Bell, 25, last week. 

And it appeared things were going from strength to strength when they enjoyed a romantic getaway together to Byron Bay this month. 

Kate, 42, was spotted getting supplies at the local bottle shop with her picking up boxes of booze before heading to the couple’s lovenest.

The actress looked to have the radiant glow of a woman in love as she carried a number of bottles of wine from the shop. 

At one point, a shop assistant even offered to carry another an over-sized white box full of Italian Peroni beers for her. 

The former Home and Away star ensured her outfit matched her vibrant mood wearing a graphic red-and-white maxi dress. 

Kate accessorised with a tan fedora along with a pair of black quilted sandals. She finished her outfit with a large tote bag slung over her shoulder. 

The star appeared to be makeup free and wore her trademark brunette bob out and around her shoulders. 

Kate’s new man was nowhere to be seen, with the radio queen making the trip for the supplies solo. 

Kate and John reportedly stayed at an Airbnb and spent most of their time on holiday relaxing by their private mineral salt pool and visiting Byron Bay’s top restaurants.

While little is known about John, resurfaced court records show he has had a minor brush with the law.

Court extracts reveal John was charged with careless driving in March 2015, but was not convicted. 

According to The Sydney Morning Herald, John was described as a ‘messed up teenager from little old Portland [Victoria]’ in an Instagram post by a friend last year.

John started security solutions business VIREOSS in September 2019.

He runs the company from the small town of Seymour, an hour and a half from Melbourne. 

Meanwhile, Kate has been keeping low-key since splitting from her husband Stuart Webb, after 10 years of marriage.

While it’s unclear when exactly Kate and Stuart split, she hasn’t worn her wedding ring in a year and moved out of their marital home in Sydney’s Randwick in late 2019.

Kate moved out after police took out an interim AVO on her behalf against the former NRL star following an incident at the property.  

In December 2019, Stuart’s five-time drink driving history was revealed in a police fact sheet as he faced court for blowing 0.083 when he was pulled over by highway patrolmen in the city’s east in March of that year.

The former couple were last spotted together in February 2020, when they celebrated their six-year-old daughter Mae’s first day of school.