The Diary: It's two for the Todds as Sir Mark remarries ex

After five years of separation Sir Mark and Carolyn remarried in a private ceremony with just their children Lauren, 26, and James, 21, present.

Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton did it. Now Olympic equestrian champion Sir Mark Todd, 58, has tied the knot again with his former wife Carolyn - five years after they legally split.

The pair got married for the second time in a small private ceremony three weeks ago in the UK, Todd's Kiwi rep told The Diary.

"Yes, I can confirm they are married again and tied the knot last month in England," said Warrick Allan, high performance manager at Equestrian Sports New Zealand. "They have been living in the UK, but are coming home to New Zealand for Christmas."

Only the couple's two children Lauren, 26, and James, 21, were present, reported Britain's Uptown Eventing website, with James acting as cameraman too.

The Todds split in 2009 after 24 years of marriage. Sir Mark moved permanently to England, and Carolyn - who stood by her husband through accusations in Britain's Sunday Mirror that he was dabbling in cocaine and casual relationships with other men - remained in New Zealand to sell the 24ha family farm in North Canterbury.

It is not clear when the couple fell back in love, but one horsey source described it as "a beautiful fairytale".

Todd retired from eventing after the Sydney Olympics in 2000 but returned to represent New Zealand in 2008 at Beijing. He went on to the London Olympics in 2012 where he finished 12th individually, and was part of the New Zealand team that won bronze. He is preparing for Rio in 2016.

3rd Degree changes

TV3's current affairs show

3rd Degree

is returning next year but change is afoot. Four staff members have been let go, The Diary understands, and a meeting about the show's future and change in format was held on Thursday - the day after the

3rd Degree

staff Christmas party at Paula Penfold's Westmere home.

Asked about the programme's future, executive producer Terence Taylor wouldn't discuss it. "I need to speak to other people first ... I'm not talking about it now."

News director Mark Jennings was reticent, too, to discuss the show's development. A spokeswoman for the company said the show would be returning next year, but she couldn't discuss staff employment issues.

Longtime producer Phill Prendeville is not returning, The Diary has learned. He wouldn't comment on the matter yesterday.

Ratings have been dismal at times for the long-form current affairs show, which often struggles to compete in its mid-week primetime slot against populist programmes and blockbuster movies.

Reporter Sam Hayes' promotion this year as co-host, alongside Duncan Garner, following Guyon Espiner's departure, has done little to alleviate that.

3rd Degree debuted in March 2013, with 283,700 viewers (aged over 5), according to Nielsen ratings. This week, the show racked up only 144,850 viewers in that demographic.

Lush slips out

While TV One held a big farewell for weatherman Jim Hickey last night, complete with a personalised cake (pictured), spare a thought for Marcus Lush, who slunk away from RadioLive yesterday without anyone saying goodbye, not on air anyway.

They're irked he's off to NZME. Paul Henry is taking over the brekkie ropes, while Lush, who formally finishes with MediaWorks mid-next year, is joining Newstalk ZB at the end of 2015. He signed off yesterday and went to celebrate his son's first birthday.

A Perry special holiday

Katy Perry's brother David ready to bungy jump.

Pop superstar Katy Perry, 30, is making her New Zealand tour a family vacation, with her Pentecostal pastor parents, Keith and Mary Hudson, and younger brother David, an aspiring singer, along for the ride.

On Wednesday, they toasted the 67th birthday of Perry's mother with a celebration at Minaret Station, a luxury tented lodge on the Western shores of Lake Wanaka. Later that night, they sat on the rocky shoreline watching the sun set over the hills and skipping pebbles into the lake. The next day, 26-year-old David took the plunge, literally, from AJ Hackett's Nevis Highwire jump in Queenstown - a 134m drop.

Perry flew to Auckland yesterday afternoon, only hours before her first of two concerts at Vector Arena. The second is tonight.

Bax fashions new role

Former supermodel and mother-of-three Kylie Bax is taking on a new role: a roving reporter for the TAB at Ellerslie Racecourse for the Boxing Day races next week. She will be giving hot betting tips and conducting fashion interviews, Auckland Racing Club's Cameron George told The Diary. "What Kylie doesn't know about horses, tips and racing, isn't worth knowing."

Is something in the water for Fraser?

Musician Brooke Fraser

Rumours are flying that musician Brooke Fraser has cancelled her 10 New Zealand gigs in March and April because she is pregnant and expecting her first child to her husband of six years, Scott Ligertwood.

However, her agents and representatives have steadfastly refused to comment. Attempts for confirmation from CRS Management reps have been futile.

Her manager Campbell Smith even appeared to fake a mobile phone signal breaking up when contacted yesterday. Sheesh, talk about avoidance.

Why the big mystery?

This week, Fraser, the daughter of former All Black Bernie Fraser, mysteriously cancelled her summer NZ tour, inexplicably blaming "unavoidable scheduling conflicts" which seems odd.

Tickets will be refunded, Fraser said on her Facebook page, but doesn't she think her fans deserve to know more?