Stephen Graham has shared how he prevented his future wife Hannah Walters from leaving to Spain to be with another man.
The Adolescence star, 53, has been married to Hannah, 52, since 2008, after meeting in theatre school.
They share two children, their daughter Grace, 21, and son Alfie, 19.
But the relationship hasn’t been without its struggles – with Stephen describing the early years as being like ‘friends with benefits’.
Adding that he had ‘commitment issues,’ he revealed that he had never taken Hannah on a date in five years.
His wake-up call came when Hannah told him that she was moving to Spain to be with another man.
Speaking on the Table Manners podcast with Jessie and Lennie Ware, Stephen said: ‘We were friends with benefits. I was s*** at that time. I had commitment issues. We were both young – I was 20 and she was 19.
‘But what happened was she went to Spain and she was there for a little bit and met this fella called Paco.
‘She was gone for a while and came back and we’d never been on a proper date but it was one of those that you don’t really know what you’re [missing] until it’s gone.’
He continued: ‘So that’s what happened and when she came back she was like, “I’m going to move to Spain for Paco”.
‘So I was like, “What do you mean?” and she said, “I’ve met this fella called Paco and I’m going to go back and I’m going to live in Spain”.
It was then that Stephen decided to ask her out on a date: dinner and a viewing of Saving Private Ryan.
Recalling their date, Stephen said: ‘We ended up at New Cross Station and she was going to Spain in two days so my a** went, I’ve got to try and pull this out the bag somehow.
‘And I don’t know where it came from but I went, “I love you”, and she said, “I’ve been waiting five years for you to say that”.
‘She never went to Spain and within three days we moved in together.’
And as for Hannah’s Spanish lover? ‘Thankfully Paco packed off,’ Stephen finished.
The rest, as they say, is history, and Stephen paid emotional tribute to his wife at the Primetime Emmy Awards last year.
Collecting his trophy for best actor in a limited or anthology series or movie (in this case, Adolescence), Stephen described Hannah as his ‘rock’ and his ‘world’.
‘You are my soulmate, and you know and I know, without you I would be dead,’ he said. ‘From the bottom of my heart, I love you with everything I have. Namaste everyone, thanks very much.’
Speaking to Lancashire Live, he also described Hannah as his ‘bezzie’ mate, adding: ‘Which is the best way, isn’t it?’ he added.
‘After a while, we just thought, “This is daft, do you know what I mean? We like each other, we should get together.”‘
Hannah is an actor in her own right, having appeared alongside Stephen in work like Boiling Point, A Thousand Blows and This Is England.
Reflecting on their marriage, she told The i in 2022: ‘I’ve always kind of taken a little bit of a backseat.
‘Stephen has had more of a prolific career, and when we were both starting out, one of us needed to get a normal job. Acting doesn’t help pay the mortgage when you’re young.’
However, in addition to her acting work, Hannah also serves as a producer with Stephen for their company Matriarch Productions.
As such, she was a driving force behind their Adolescence, acting as executive producer while also appearing in a cameo as teacher Mrs Bailey.
‘Behind every little Scouser, there’s a strong Midlander!’ she told the Irish Independent.