Two Japanese actresses will tie the knot next year in the conservative country’s first celebrity gay marriage.

Akane Sugimori, 28, and Ayaka Ichinose, 34, Saturday (20 December) announced that they will hold their wedding ceremony and banquet on 20 April next year.

The couple met at a gay bar in Shinjuku, Tokyo in October 2012 and started living together in the spring of last year, according to Sankei Sports newspaper.

‘We hope gay people will also be able to marry in Japan, and hope our wedding can help promote this goal,’ Ichinose said in a statement.

Ichinose came out as a lesbian in 2009 and Sugimori has said she ‘over 90% likes women.’

Even though gay marriage is not legally recognized in Japan, most netizens congratulated the couple and praised their courage.