‘We have incredibly strong chemistry’: Couple’s ‘uncomfortable’ age gap relationship divides opinion

Alexandra Cornish met Andrew Chan when she was 24 and he was travelling in Sydney

A woman who fell for a man almost twice her age at 22 years her senior has revealed how they connected over their shared love of tattoos.

Alexandra Cornish, 24, met Andrew Chan, 46, in February 2022 while he was travelling in Sydney.

Andrew, a recruitment firm owner who lives between Singapore, Hong Kong, and Sydney, was looking to get a tattoo on his travels when he came across the tattoo parlour where Alexandra was working.

He originally wanted a Chinese artist because of the design, but decided to go ahead with Alexandra – which proved to be a fated encounter.

“We had incredibly strong chemistry, to the point where I actually tattooed him for longer than I needed so we could continue talking,” Alexandra told NeedToKnow.co.uk.

“He even asked for more to be added to the tattoo for the same reason.

“It was very serendipitous that one meeting by chance could lead to all this.

“I knew his age from a form he completed when he got the tattoo but because of how drawn I was to him, it didn't deter me.”

The couple hit it off and soon went on their first date for lunch just a few days later, having “intense chemistry” and chatting for hours.

Now, the couple are happier than ever, and even film TikToks together, where they have attracted hundreds of thousands of views thanks to the age difference.

One video on TikTok, titled “He definitely doesn’t look it”, gained 427,700 views and 41,600 likes as the couple flaunt their age gap – much to the chagrin of trolls.

A viewer commented: “My daughter is 22 years younger than me. Very uncomfortable age gap.”

“His body had stopped producing collagen when she was being born. So romantic,” added someone.

One person said: “That’s some Leo diCaprio stuff.”

(Jam Press/Andrew Chan)

“Yo hate to break it to you, he definitely looks it,” joked another.

In another video, the couple is seen in a nightclub, with Andrew asking if he is too old to be there — the pair joking about his age.

A separate video shows the couple comparing their relationship to famous celebrities, also in age-gap relationships, including George Clooney and Sarah Paulson.

While the couple have attracted stares when they are out in public, they are determined not to let the age gap come between them.

Alexandra said: “If we hear a comment, it's from people that already know our age as Andrew looks fairly young for his age, so people wouldn't assume the gap is as big as 22 years.

“If anything, we get more comments about our race than age.

“No one close to us would say anything because they see how happy we make each other.

“Me and Andrew’s mum got along quite well, his parents also had a large age gap, so it wasn't too unusual.

(Jam Press/Andrew Chan)

“My parents knew about Andrew and his age from the beginning and they were both completely fine with the relationship.

“They were honestly just very happy I'd met someone that made me so happy.

“When they met, they got along well.”

Alexandra added: “We're having fun and seeing where this journey leads us.

“We're in a healthy and fun relationship.

“Aside from the age, a big difference is that we've both never dated anyone outside our careers before, so it's interesting learning new things and being able to have different experiences we wouldn't necessarily have without the other.

“We do have different perspectives on things, but we understand one another really well and have a lot of similar interests.”