Rove McManus strolled hand in hand on the golden sands with his beloved Tasma Walton, in the ideal setting for a proposal. On the palm-lined beaches of idyllic Port Douglas, Rove and Tasma, the woman who mended his broken heart and let him love again, cuddled without a care.

And their week-long romantic stay in a secluded waterfront villa on Oak Beach in far north Queensland was poignant. They celebrated their first anniversary in the same private holiday resort where, last year, heartbroken Rove sought solace after his wife Belinda Emmett died of breast cancer in November 2006.

On the same stretch of sand where he cut a forlorn figure, listening to Belinda's music on an iPod, wondering how he could ever overcome his grief, he was now sharing a tropical paradise with his new love.

Rove, cutting a trim figure in bright board shorts, and Tasma, who showed off her stunning svelte shape in a black bikini, left onlookers in no doubt as to why they're such a sought-after couple.

'They look like a perfect match,' said one beachgoer, who watched the popular couple brave the cold for a late afternoon dip. 'Rove was a real gentleman. He tested the water first, then led Tasma into the sea, holding her hand.

'He's been through such a lot, he deserves every bit of happiness. I reckon good luck to them both.'

Taking the next step

Friends of Rove told New Idea of Rove's desire to marry again - and all the signs were there, with his choice of holiday location signifying it was time to confront the past and plan for the long-term future.

'He's unashamedly besotted by Tasma,' one friend says. 'They're inseparable, and so in love that marriage is the obvious next step. Rove's a down-to-earth, regular everyday guy who truly believes Belinda would want him to move on and be happy.'

In January of last year, the talk-show host made the heart-breaking journey alone to Port Douglas on his second wedding anniversary.

Rove recalls: 'It was hard, but I got up in the morning and watched the sun come up while walking on the beach with a cap, sunglasses and an iPod. I was listening to Belinda's new music and just reflected on everything.'

It was at this time that he bravely removed his wedding band.

'I had a chat to Mum about it and I said I don't know what to do. It seems like a dumb thing, but it's not - it's an important thing,' he said.

'You don't want to seem like you've forgotten the past or anything, but at the same time you have to move on. So I thought maybe it was a significant day to do it and that's what I did. I've kept both of them and made them into a band.

'I'm sure Belinda wouldn't want me sitting in the house doing nothing with myself but wallow in my own self pity.'

Heating up in the tropics

How things change - Rove would never have guessed that only 20 months later he'd be back in Port Douglas and in love with a girl he's known for more than a decade. Rove and former Blue Heelers star Tasma, both 34, hail from Western Australia, and though their paths crossed many times, it wasn't until nine months after Belinda's death that they began dating. Not long after, she moved into his house in Melbourne and their love's gone from strength to strength.

In Queensland, Rove and Tasma played tourist, enjoying long walks along the beach and all-day hikes in the tropical rainforests of Cape Tribulation. Although they chose to stay in a private holiday house, Rove and Tasma mingled with the locals, having breakfast with the birds at Habitat restaurant in Port Douglas, and feasting on fish and chips.

Resident Peter Blake said: 'We're over being star-struck - we don't invade anyone's space. We've seen the likes of Kate Hudson, Val Kilmer, Marlon Brando and Tom Hanks up here enjoying the tropics, so Rove will always know that if he wants peace and serenity there's no better place to be. It's paradise.'

By Warren Gibbs