Ex-Minister for Foreign Affairs Alexander Downer has spoken about how he played matchmaker to Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban back in 2005 – and revealed how he feels about the star couple’s shock divorce.

When news broke this week that Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban were filing for divorce after 19 years of marriage, few could have imagined that one of the people who brought them together would be a well-known politician.

Ex-foreign affairs minister Alexander Downer told Sky News host Chris Kenny he had personally introduced the pair at the G’Day USA gala in Los Angeles back in 2005.

“At an Australian function in Los Angeles, I was in the green room talking to Nicole Kidman, and Keith Urban was brought in,” he told the Kenny Report on Thursday.

“To be honest with you, in those days, I didn’t know much about Keith Urban. I shook hands with Keith, and I said to him, ‘do you know Nicole Kidman?’ And he said, no, he didn’t.

“They shook hands with each other and the rest is history, at least up until now. So, it’s sad to see the relationship break up.”

Kidman lodged papers in a Nashville court citing “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for the split from the Grammy-winning country music star.

The filings included a detailed parenting plan for their two daughters, Sunday (16), and Faith (13). The plan requests Kidman be the primary carer, with Urban having them for 59 days a year.

The separation has stunned Hollywood and fans around the world. The pair were long considered one of Australia’s most successful power couples, balancing red carpet appearances, international tours and global box office hits with family life in Nashville.

Kidman and Urban married in Sydney in 2006, just a year after meeting. Their marriage endured public struggles, including Urban’s admission to rehab four months after the wedding.

Australian-American singer Keith Urban and American-Australian actress Nicole Kidman look on during the Men’s Singles Final match between Novak Djokovic of Serbia and Daniil Medvedev of Russia on Day Fourteen of the 2023 US Open. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
At the time, Urban publicly praised Kidman for standing by him.

“Nic pushed through every negative voice, I’m sure even some of her own, and she chose love,” he said in a speech last year, reflecting on how she helped him through addiction.

But the couple also insisted they were never a “perfect couple”.

Kidman told reporters last year, “You’re heading for trouble if you consider yourselves the perfect couple. I’m not a believer in perfect.”

Despite these warnings, there was little to suggest divorce was imminent. They were last seen together at events earlier this year, with Urban frequently describing his wife as his greatest inspiration.

Former Foreign Minister Alexander Downer. Picture: Getty Images)
For Downer, the divorce marks a poignant end to a story he inadvertently began nearly two decades ago.

His account of introducing the two stars provides an unexpected political footnote to one of Hollywood’s biggest celebrity relationships.