Stella Mickunaite: Elopement Plans Before Engagement Ended

Married At First Sight bride Stella Mickunaite and Filip Gregov were preparing to elope just days before he abruptly ended their engagement.

In a shock twist to the couple's increasingly messy split, Stella, 32, told Daily Mail she had been secretly planning a wedding ceremony for Saturday, July 25.

The beauty technician claimed arrangements were already being discussed with celebrity jeweller Simon Curwood, and the events manager at Novella on the Park – the Western venue where the couple tied the knot during the experiment last year.

'It's absolute bollocks and it's so far beyond the truth,' Stella said in response to claims the pair were no longer aligned on their future.

'I was planning to offer for us to elope. I had plans in place for July 25 with Simon Curwood, and the events manager at the venue where we got married last year.'

She had even planned a magazine deal.

Stella's revelation suggests she believed the pair were still moving towards marriage shortly before Filip, 37, ended their relationship over the phone. 

However, sources close to Filip have strongly disputed Stella's version of events, telling Daily Mail the couple's disagreement over where they would live had become an insurmountable issue.

One insider claimed Stella had 'zero intention' of relocating from Sydney to Melbourne and said such a move had never been seriously considered by the couple.

'Stella had no plans to move to Melbourne. It wasn't even an option,' the source alleged.

'That was a major reason Filip wanted out. He could not see how the relationship was going to work when they were not on the same page about where they would build their life.'

The claim directly contradicts Stella's public statement earlier this week, in which she insisted she had decided to relocate to Melbourne and had spent months preparing for the move.

'One thing I do want to clarify is that, despite what was shown on the show, I had made the decision to move to Melbourne,' she wrote.

'It offered more family support, better work opportunities for Filip and a more affordable place for us to build a life together.

'I've always been realistic about my biological clock, and starting a family has been something I've hoped for for a long time. 

'I genuinely thought we were making those decisions together. Instead, I received a phone call ending our relationship.'

During the experiment, however, it was Filip who was shown making plans to move from Melbourne to Sydney, where Stella is based.

He had even been given keys to her apartment as the pair prepared to continue their relationship outside the show.

The conflicting accounts have now raised fresh questions about exactly what was happening behind closed doors – and whether the former couple ever truly agreed on their future.

Stella said she had been 'completely blindsided' when Filip ended their relationship just weeks shy of their one–year anniversary.

She later admitted she was 'heartbroken, deeply saddened and, if I'm being honest, incredibly embarrassed' that the romance had fallen apart.

Filip broke his silence on Wednesday with a carefully worded statement in which he declined to address Stella's claims directly.

'I initially chose not to comment publicly because I didn't want to contribute to online negativity,' he wrote.

'All I will say is, I'm not going to debate our relationship on social media.

'I respect what we shared, wish Stella the best, and I'm moving forward with peace and gratitude.'

He signed off the message simply as 'Fil'.