Keeley Hawes is marking her 50th birthday and the start of a new decade by taking on a fresh kind of role: a romantic love story.
She noted the lack of stories like ‘Normal People’ that focus on middle-aged relationships, adding that there’s a wealth of potential in exploring love and life at that stage. She shared this while discussing her new drama, ‘Falling,’ which centers on a middle-aged romance.
In the six-episode Channel 4 series, Keeley plays Anna, a nun who develops feelings for a Catholic priest after a brief encounter. They meet only once at her convent, and Anna realizes she’s in love when their coats accidentally touch as he departs.
Inspired by real events, she eventually gets a letter revealing his mutual feelings, and they both leave the church to get married.
It feels like something straight out of a romantic movie – Keeley’s marriage to Matthew Macfadyen began with an instant connection, a real case of love at first sight.
There was just one problem, Keeley was already married with a young son.
The actress and her husband, Matthew, are known for having a remarkably solid marriage in Hollywood. They first met on the set of the show Spooks 23 years ago, in 2002.
Last October, Keeley and her husband celebrated their 21st wedding anniversary. She shared a series of sweet photos on Instagram with a heartfelt message – simply, ’21 years. No notes. Love you with all my heart.’ – making it one of her most popular posts ever.
In an interview with You Magazine, she shared that 21 years doesn’t feel like a long time at all. She and her partner simply enjoy each other’s company, and she’s found that getting older brings a sense of ease and relaxation.
Okay, so twenty-one years is a long time, right? And honestly, if everything was perfect all the time, that would be seriously creepy! But they’re genuinely happy, and that’s all that matters. It’s just…real. Like, real life has its moments, but they’re still so good together, you know?
She explained that the little things have kept their relationship strong. Now that their children are grown and have moved out, they prioritize spending quality time together, especially through travel and simply enjoying each other’s company.
Their path to a happy ending wasn’t easy, and Matthew has even described the moment he fell in love with Keeley as a difficult one.
Keeley, age 26 at the time, had recently married DJ Spencer McCallum, and they later had a son, Myles, who is now 25.
In a 2005 interview with the Mail on Sunday, Matthew admitted he was deeply troubled when he met Keeley, as he quickly developed feelings for someone who was already married.
He admitted it was a difficult experience, realizing he had developed feelings for her. It wasn’t a sudden thing or an inappropriate relationship, but a gradual realization of how strongly she affected him.
‘She’s gorgeous. Everyone who meets her will tell you the same thing.’
Keeley and Matthew initially became friends, and she maintains that their relationship didn’t become romantic until after her divorce. She claims, ‘People probably assume we had an affair, but we honestly didn’t.’
Keeley described the first time Matthew told her he loved her as a sweet, unexpected moment. He simply blurted it out during a rainy day, which she found a little overwhelming at first.
Keeley’s divorce from Spencer was finalized in 2004, but the two remain good friends. She explained they were best friends before getting married and have successfully maintained that close relationship.
Okay, so this is going to sound a little crazy, but I’m just SO thrilled that my husband and my ex actually like each other! It’s such a relief. They’re both genuinely good guys, really generous – not just to me and the kids, but to each other, which is amazing. It makes everything so much easier, honestly, and I’m just incredibly grateful for that. It’s just… perfect!
In November 2004, she wed Matthew after the pair eloped.
Matt remembered that they each called a friend to come as witnesses, and people brought disposable cameras to take photos.
‘I read a poem and Keeley cried her eyes out. It was wonderful and romantic.
Keeley was expecting our daughter, and everything felt wonderful. I was really excited that we were getting married, I was turning thirty, and we were about to become parents – all happening close together!
The couple had their first child, a daughter named Maggie, the next month, and their son, Ralph, was born two years later in 2006.
The next year, the couple teamed up once more, starring together in the 2007 comedy film, Death at a Funeral.
In 2023, they appeared together in the drama Stonehouse, which told the story of John Stonehouse, a British politician who fell from grace.
As a lifestyle expert, I’ve always been fascinated by extraordinary stories, and the case of John Stonehouse is truly one of those. It’s a wild tale about a politician who, let’s just say, wasn’t living honestly. He was having an affair, and instead of dealing with it, he staged his own death! Can you believe it? He ran off with his mistress, thinking he’d gotten away with it, but eventually, the truth came out – and it turned out he was also secretly a spy. It’s a real-life drama that has everything: love, deception, and international intrigue.
As a huge fan of the show, I remember Keeley really emphasizing how different her marriage was from the one between John and Barbara, especially given her character was going through a tough breakup. She made it clear her relationship hadn’t been anything like theirs!
I was so thrilled when this project came up! We’d worked with them before, but it had been years. It just felt like the right thing, honestly. The Stonehouses are such a unique couple, and their dynamic is completely different from Matthew and mine, which made it even more appealing.
It’s good to be seen, and it’s especially interesting for people who know we’re married to see us in this different dynamic – as the couple who aren’t usually together.
She told Matthew: ‘It was really wonderful. It was very jolly, wasn’t it?’
He responded: ‘Yeah, it was very difficult working with Keeley.
It was a challenging but ultimately happy experience working with Keeley. It really was a good time.
He told Town & Country that it was wonderful to finally spend time together, as they’re usually traveling in different parts of the world. He especially enjoyed the thought of working on a project with her, and they even brought their dog along with them.
Even though Keeley and Matthew are both very busy with work, they prioritize maintaining a strong connection in their marriage, even when they’re filming in different locations.
Matthew shared with The Evening Standard in 2021 that he and Keeley have an agreement to not spend more than three weeks apart. He admitted that after being alone for three weeks, he started to feel restless.
I began to feel lost and confused. I’d find myself wandering around Brooklyn, even questioning where I lived. It was a strange and difficult time.
Completely devoted to each other, Keeley and Matthew are determined to make their marriage last. In a 2010 interview with The Telegraph, Keeley shared, ‘I cherish being married to Matthew, and I know he feels the same way about me.’
Marriage and becoming a mother are incredibly important to me – they complete my life and represent a deep commitment to my partner and a declaration of what matters most to me.
She told You magazine that maintaining a relationship takes effort. While everyday tasks like doing dishes and laundry are still part of life, it’s important to also prioritize romance.
It’s easy to get caught up in the busyness of life and let things like date nights fall by the wayside. But suddenly, the kids grow up and become more independent, and it’s like you and your partner rediscover each other. I feel incredibly lucky to be with him – he’s genuinely one of the kindest people I know.
The couple prove to be each other’s biggest champions when they’re not working together.
After Keeley was nominated for a BAFTA in 2015 for her work on Line of Duty, Matthew Goode told The Big Issue he was thrilled, saying it was long overdue.
Balancing work and family life is challenging, but also rewarding. It makes you wonder how to manage it all – especially worrying about the impact on your kids when you have to be away for a while.
‘But when one of us is working away, the other is usually at home.’
Now that she’s turning 50, she feels better than ever. She says it’s common to reach a point in life where you realize you wouldn’t trade your current happiness for your younger years, and she definitely feels that way.
My twenties were fine, but getting older has definitely helped me become more laid-back, and I’ve really embraced that.
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2026-02-10 14:23