Meet Claudia Winkleman’s husband Kris Thykier: Strictly star’s rarely-seen spouse, 53, is a BAFTA-nominated film producer, feminist and ‘bit of a Viking’ but his ‘shameful and problematic’ habit has presenter refusing sex

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Fans were surprised last week when Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly announced they were leaving their roles as hosts of Strictly Come Dancing.

Although Tess and her friend didn’t say exactly why she was leaving, many believe her husband, Vernon Kay, is happy about it. Her departure might allow him to pursue his long-held ambition of finding success in the United States.

Claudia’s husband, Kris Thykier, 53, is probably very happy about this news too, as it means he’ll get to spend more time with his wife of 25 years.

He’s also involved in television, but unlike Claudia, who’s a familiar face on screen, Kris has built a successful career as a producer of TV shows and movies.

He’s contributed to films like Stardust (2007), Kick-Ass (2010), I Give It A Year (2013), and Operation Mincemeat (2021). He also served as an executive producer for projects such as Burnt (2015) and the popular TV series Riviera, which aired from 2017 to 2020.

While his wife has been mingling with celebrities on shows like Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity Traitors, Kris has also worked with several famous faces, including Michael Caine in the 2009 film Harry Brown and Madonna in her movie W.E.

This year, he worked on several projects, including the crime drama MobLand with stars Tom Hardy, Pierce Brosnan, and Helen Mirren, as well as Bradley Cooper’s film Is This Thing On?.

Similar to Claudia, he’s also been recognized with an award – he received his first BAFTA nomination in 2015 for the film Trash, directed by Stephen Daldry, in the category of Best Film Not in the English Language.

Three years after his first nomination, Kris received a BAFTA nomination for Best Mini-Series for his work on Channel 4’s The State.

He and Claudia got married in a small, private ceremony at Marylebone Town Hall in June 2000.

The host of The Traitors later jokingly revealed one detail about her wedding, describing her dress as ‘disgusting’.

During an appearance on the game show The Wheel in 2021, she confessed to a contestant that she also wanted the prize money to purchase a wedding dress.

After realizing she’d misanswered, Claudia generously offered to pay for the player’s dress and thoughtfully considered her own mistake.

She offered to buy me a wedding dress, explaining that her own wasn’t suitable to borrow. She felt a new dress was the best solution, and that’s what she planned to do.

She and Kris went on to have three children: Jake, born in 2003, Matilda in 2006, and Arthur in 2011. Jake is now 22, Matilda is 19, and Arthur is 14.

A year after having her third child, Claudia shared that she still wanted another baby, but Kris had told her no more children were allowed.

She told Mandrake: ‘I’d like another baby but my husband has banned me from having more.’

Despite her initial reluctance, she admitted it was the right choice, saying, ‘It’s probably for the best, because I’d have nine more otherwise.’

Last year, Claudia and Kris started collaborating more directly when Claudia left her previous agency, YMU, following some controversy, to join Little Arrow – a company Kris had founded.

As Claudia and her husband approach their 25th wedding anniversary, she’s been sharing some lovely thoughts about their relationship. She says she feels incredibly fortunate to have found such lasting love, and honestly, as a longtime fan of theirs, I couldn’t agree more! It’s so heartwarming to see a couple still so happy after all these years.

She revealed the secret to her long marriage, sharing advice from Gwyneth Paltrow’s father, Bruce Danner, in an interview with The Sunday Times.

Claudia shared a funny response from Bruce Danner when he was asked if he’d ever considered divorce after being married for so long. He quipped, ‘Sure, but never at the same time!’ Claudia thought it was brilliant and said she felt very fortunate to have heard it.

Claudia has often jokingly questioned how their marriage has lasted as long as it has. She credits Kris’s Danish background and feminist views as key factors in their successful and harmonious relationship.

She’s confessed she’s not very good at household tasks, even calling herself incredibly lazy, but she says Kris always takes care of things and makes up for it.

She explained that her husband, Kris, has very traditional Danish habits. This means she doesn’t feel responsible for cooking meals, and he doesn’t take the initiative to play with the kids outside.

After twenty years of marriage, my husband has never once asked me about dinner plans. I married someone who believed in equality – my mother would have been very upset if I hadn’t.

She also appreciates Kris for helping her juggle her busy work life and family, even saying, ‘My husband is a better parent than I am.’

Claudia described how she and her partner support each other, especially when one of them is overwhelmed. For instance, knowing Claudia struggles during the busy period before the ‘Strictly’ final, her partner often takes on extra tasks like Christmas shopping for their nieces and nephews.

She explained that Kris is the more affectionate one in their relationship, jokingly saying she isn’t very romantic and that he’s ‘much more romantic than me, the poor thing!’

In December, she shared a little more about their relationship, explaining that she doesn’t want to upset Kris by saying too much, but he has a very reserved personality. She also emphasized that everything they do is a team effort, not something she handles alone.

He’s never simply asked what’s for dinner. He always phrases it as a suggestion – ‘What are we having?’ or ‘Should I cook something?’ It’s a small difference in how he says it, but it’s noticeable.

He never asks me when the kids go back to school. Instead, he finds the information himself. It’s like that with his entire family – they all prefer to look things up rather than ask.

The television personality also mentioned that Kris has thought about what their life will be like once all three of their children have moved out, but she wasn’t entirely sure if those plans would actually happen.

She mentioned Kris has a long-held dream of buying a small boat and living on the water. She described him as having a bit of an adventurous, seafaring spirit, but wasn’t sure how practical that lifestyle would be.

Earlier this year, Claudia playfully revealed that she nearly ended things with Kris when he unexpectedly suggested a last-minute vacation.

In a May article for the Telegraph, she described herself as someone who isn’t carefree or spontaneous, so she was completely surprised by her husband’s sudden decision.

I remember her saying, ‘Honey, let’s just run away somewhere, totally last minute!’ It really shocked me. I almost walked out on him! Last minute? Seriously? It’s like he doesn’t even know me. After 27 years together, I’ve never once been impulsive or done anything without planning it all out.

You know, I recently surprised myself by actually enjoying a last-minute trip to Marrakech! I was hesitant at first, but it turned out to be amazing. I actually turned to my husband and said, ‘Why has nobody told me about this place before?’ He just raised an eyebrow and playfully reminded me that he’d been suggesting it for years, but I always stuck to our usual vacation spots. It was a good reminder to step outside my comfort zone – and listen to his travel ideas!

She’s also openly shared that she won’t allow Kris to kiss or touch her if he’s had too much water – she considers it a major no-no.

Claudia revealed a surprising reason she might not be compatible with someone on the Off Menu podcast. She confessed to comedians Ed Gamble and James Acaster that she has a strange fear of water.

She made it very clear she strongly dislikes water, stating she doesn’t trust it and refuses to drink it. She was adamant about her aversion.

She strongly stated her dislike is so intense that it’s affecting her relationship, and Kris ends up dealing with the fallout whenever he drinks.

Claudia described a frustrating situation with her husband. He drinks an excessive amount of water, which bothers her, and she feels he often says inappropriate things. He once told her to remove her bra, leaving her feeling upset and offended, and she firmly told him his behavior was unacceptable.

She continued, explaining it like this: “Think about being on a date – I’ve been with the same person for a century! He’ll be sitting there asking, ‘I can’t decide what to order, what are you getting? Perhaps we should get the same thing.'”

Then, someone offered him water, and he happily accepted. He drank the entire pint glass in one go.

Will you really want to kiss someone with a mouth like that again? It’s overly wet, with a large, fleshy tongue covered in saliva.

Claudia shocked the hosts by admitting she’d rather Kris be dehydrated, jokingly describing her ideal outcome as wanting him to be “a dry, shrivelled-up little man.”

I’m attracted to Mr. Burns, but I have a strange request – I want him to join me at the table, and I specifically don’t want him drinking anything. I really dislike liquids, even wine or anything else to drink. I’m wondering if that sounds odd.

Claudia and Tess, the hosts of the show since it began in 2004, announced last week on Instagram that they are leaving. They shared the news in a video of themselves sitting together.

The two friends said they had decided to leave Strictly almost a year ago after having several honest conversations with each other.

Claudia spoke directly to her fans, saying, ‘We’ve heard the talk and wanted to address it ourselves.’

Oh my goodness, I’m absolutely gutted! Tess just announced it – after twenty-one years of pure joy on Strictly, they’ve decided to leave! Can you believe it? They said it’s time to step aside and let someone else take over. It feels like the end of an era, honestly. I’m going to miss them so, so much!

“That baton is really sparkly!” Claudia chuckled, then turned to her friend and fellow actor, saying, “You’ve been with me from the start.”

Tess responded, indicating Claudia, ‘I worked with Bruce, the wonderful Bruce Forsyth, over twenty years ago, but I’ve spent much more time working with you.’

It’s been a significant part of our lives, starting when our children were very young, and now that they’re grown, we truly appreciate every moment we’ve shared.

Claudia went on to say how lucky they were to be a part of the wonderful show, and expressed their gratitude to the entire Strictly team, emphasizing that the show’s success is down to the people behind the scenes.

We really enjoyed working together, and hosting Strictly was a wonderful experience for both of us.

We always planned to finish our time on the show together, and it feels like the perfect moment to do so. We’re excited for what’s to come and want to express our huge gratitude to the BBC and everyone who works on the series.

This team is incredibly talented, and we’re going to miss them dearly. It will be hard to say goodbye, but we’ll always encourage each other to keep going.

‘Just possibly in tracksuit bottoms at home while holding some pizza.’

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2025-11-01 15:07