Dawn O'Porter on her 'blissful' first year of marriage to Bridesmaids star Chris O'Dowd

Dawn O'Porter looks nervous.

Dressed as a seriously stylish 70s ball girl, the 34-year-old presenter turned author has just finished interviewing some of the behind the scenes staff at this year's Wimbledon but as she munches on a banana she exhales, "You're not going to ask me a load of tennis questions are you?"

Turns out Dawn, who has just finished her very first book tour for her inaugural novel 'Paper Aeroplanes,' isn't a huge fan of tennis but she still jumped at the chance to meet the unsung heroes of this world-famous British sporting event.

"I'm not massively interested in tennis but when I was asked to interview the true characters of Wimbledon, that really sparked my interest," admits Dawn over a cream tea with refreshing white wine spritzers courtesy of Jacob's Creek.

"When I heard there was an official Wimbledon hairdresser, I just had to speak to them."

As well as interviewing the hairdresser (who confirms a lot of players are 'reasonably vain'), Dawn also got chatting to the club pro ('kind of like a Wimbledon concierge service for the players') and the head groundsman who looks after each blade in SW19 365 days a year.

"I tried to get some tips for my lawn but I realised that was pointless," laughs Dawn. "There is a team of 16 people who look after Centre Court and I'm barely a team of one."

Dawn can be forgiven for neglecting her garden recently though as the new author has had an awfully busy year.

As well as the much anticipated release of Paper Aeroplanes, Dawn has been filming new TV specials, attending book festivals and settling into life as a married woman.

Next month Dawn celebrates her first anniversary with actor husband, Chris O'Dowd and she admits it's been a pretty sweet year.

"I honestly didn't think Chris and I would ever get married. I thought we would be together forever but I didn't think about marriage. So when he proposed it took me totally by surprise," she reveals, breaking into a genuinely contented grin.

The pair met in Los Angeles and lived in California for a couple of years before coming back to London where they live with their dog Potato and cat Lilu.

You'll recognise Chris from Channel 4 comedy, The IT Crowd, but it was his turn as a loveable Irish cop in 2011's "Bridesmaids" that got Hollywood talking and lead to his own Sky1 show, the hilarious Moone Boy.

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"We spend quite a lot of time apart," Dawn admits but having her husband away filming in the US or Ireland hasn't dampened their first year as man and wife.

"We're quite a flirty couple and because we're not together all the time we go on lots of dates, which is fun."

Dawn is the first to admit that she had some pre-conceived notions about the institute of marriage but a year on, how does she feel?

"I didn't think that marriage would change anything but it really does," says Dawn. 'I didn't realise how many subliminal insecurities I had in the relationship."

"When you're dating someone, you constantly say 'if' - if we're together next year, if we buy a house here. As soon as Chris and I got married, I started thinking 'when' and that takes such a weight off your shoulders."

If became when in August 2012 when the pair got hitched in London over a fun-filled weekend that involved friends, family and a couple of onesies.

Dawn added an O' to her maiden name to create her new married moniker and admits that making it all official does make it tougher to worm your way out during the more testing times.

"Somewhere deep in my psychology, I think there's a part of me that wants to sabotage things," she muses.
 
"So before we got married, an argument was a chance for me to possibly argue my way out of this if I needed to. But when you're married you just want to stay in it."

"When you realise you're going to be with someone for the rest of your life, arguments get resolved very quickly - there's no point in fighting."

Next up for Dawn is the sequel to Paper Aeroplanes, which she has just one month to write before celebrating her anniversary at a spa in Ireland.

A self-confessed Twitter addict, Dawn is switching off the social networking to concentrate on her novel but she's got a lot of support behind her.

"Chris and I are such a team - we stick up for each other in everything," beams Dawn.

"It's blissful - I really hope this isn't just a first year of marriage thing!"

Dawn O’Porter is working with Jacob’s Creek, the official wine of Wimbledon, to uncover the true characters of the 2013 Championships. Go to www.facebook.com/jacobscreekuk