Comedians Zoe Coombs Marr and Rhys Nicholson, who are both gay, got married in a Melbourne ceremony on Friday night in a raucous protest against Australia's ban on same-sex marriage.

Jim Lee Photo

The wedding took place as part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, where Coombs Marr took out the prestigious Barry Award for best show.

Complete with songs, dances, mock protesters and an impressive cast of Australian comedians, the part-party, part-protest was a colourful affair.

But it had some serious moments, too.

Comedian Hannah Gadsby gave a powerful speech, saying the "think of the children" argument commonly used against same-sex marriage is actually one in favour.

Jim Lee Photo

“When you say to a person, ‘No. You cannot join in. You do not belong in this community’, the end of that sentence is not the end of the story. The ramifications are traumatic to the individual," she said.

“Rhys and Zoe are doing this for all of the children. Because at the moment, what we are doing in this country is saying to all of the children that it is OK to exclude a minority. It is OK to be a bully," Gadsby continued.

“Through their union, filled with love and disrespect, from both within and without, what Rhys and Zoe would like to say to all children is that being inclusive is just as important as being included.”

The ceremony finished with the, erm, loving couple declining to kiss one another and opting for a passionate smooch with their same-sex partners instead.

Coombs Marr told BuzzFeed News the couple had been "engaged" since August 2015.

"The idea came to me in a dressing room," she said. "I was in drag, dressed as a man, and Rhys was in semi-drag as an androgynous dandy. Rhys said, 'We look like a really fucked up wedding couple'."

"We thought it was pretty funny, and the idea stuck in my head. I thought it was something we could do to assert ourselves in a way that was fun but also quite provocative."

Coombs Marr described the event as a "massive farce".

Jim Lee Photo

"It is a farce that we can't get married, that we're still talking about this in 2016," she said.

"We want to say, come on guys, this is really silly. We can't marry our partners but we can marry each other."

The wedding also served as a fundraiser for LGBTI youth charity Minus18.

The Melbourne-based group run events, such as same-sex and gender diverse formals, and provide resources and support to LGBTI youth.

"It's really important that young people are getting the message that their relationships are their own and as valid as anybody else's," said Coombs Marr.