40 is the new 20! Local vlogging couple are smashing age stereotypes one vid at a time
First impressions are everything, but those between UK-born Taz, 40, and Maltese gal Miriam Gardner, 46, were like no other couple you’ve heard about before. Taz was a 7’2 hairy Tauren Shaman and Miriam was a green skinned Orc warrior, both battling their way through a place called Zul Gurub in the MMORPG game World of Warcraft.
The pair met through one of the world’s biggest multiplayer games, which is a great way of meeting people with common interests but not so great when it came to actual courting: “Our dating consisted of dungeons and raids, many long chats online and phone calls for over a year until the opportunity arrived for one of us to move to the other,” the couple reveal.
Taz’s proposal is as unique as their first encounter: “It was Christmas and unfortunately he couldn’t be with us as he was working,” says Miriam. Taz had passed on a DVD to one of Miriam’s family members with strict instructions for it to be played before gifts were opened. “He proposed on the big screen TV in front of all the family,” she says.
Ten years later, they are married and happily settled in Malta. United not only by their love of online games, but also travel and photography, the couple set up their own lifestyle and travel YouTube channel MTLATV in 2017. “MTLATV was originally created as a way to reflect on our travels and also provide a little bit of visual info for anyone that may be interested,” they explain.
The acronyms represent the following: M is for Miriam, T is for Taz, (which coincidentally are also the acronyms for Malta), L is for Lifestyle, A is a filler which stands for the word 'and', T is for Travel and V is for Vlog. "MTLATV is a lot easier to announce than MT Lifestyle & Travel Vlog," they explain.
Admittedly, not much was uploaded back in the early days, but things took a more active turn last year: “In 2019 we really started to focus on it and producing content,” they say, adding that street food and getting lost in new places not only provided memorable experiences but also generated great content.
Narrating both local and international experiences, their favourite filmed moments have so far been the canyoneering video from the Philippines and the Malta Fashion Week (MFW) video. Both are pivotal for different reasons; the former shows Miriam overcoming some of her biggest fears and the latter showed Taz’s transition from photographing the MFW to filming it.
There have also been many hilarious mishaps along the way, some of which (unfortunately) went unfilmed. Miriam once got stuck halfway on a zip line between two islands and Taz narrates the funny circumstances surrounding it: “It was hilarious especially after the safety guys had warned me that I could or might get stuck,” he laughs.
The husband and wife duo are mixing things up a little this 2020: “we’ve decided to film more and put out more of our everyday lives,” they reveal. Amongst the exciting things they have planned are a local version of Vogue’s 73 questions video trend, as well as some interesting collaborations, the latest of which will be with The Clintess.
Their focus has now shifted to a more noble mission: “we want to inspire all age ranges to get out of their comfort zone, face fears, break boundaries and experience life as a true adventure without fear of age,” they say.
Based on their motto 'Influence your own life', the pair want to prove that you don't need to be in your 20s to enjoy life and have fun: “We hope that through our vlog we can encourage people to live their own lives and live it to the fullest possible potential without boundaries.”
Follow this incredible husband & wife duo on YouTube MT Lifestyle & Travel Vlog or Instagram @mtlatv.