Strictly's Nigel Harman met his Hollywood actress wife in very ordinary way

30 September 2023 , 17:15

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Nigel Harman and Katya Jones (Image: PA)

EastEnders actor Nigel Harman brought the Strictly house down in epic fashion last Saturday with his fiery Paso Doble with partner Katya Jones.

While the 50-year-old, who is best known for playing his “bad boy” soap character Dennis Rickman, will be hoping to steal the spotlight for the next 12 weeks in his bid to win the coveted Glitterball trophy, fans may not realise that he is not the only famous face in his family. Since 2011, Nigel has been married to Lucy Leimann - a Hollywood actress with an equally impressive resume of acting jobs including The Bourne Ultimatum in 2007.

It would be easy to think that the Olivier award-winning actor and Hollywood star would have met in the most glamorous fashion, but in fact, the way they met was really quite ordinary. Like many of us, the first time the couple met was quite simply at work.

Nigel Harman as "bad boy" Dennis Rickman in EastEnders (BBC)

The couple are thought to have first met on the set of BBC TV series Hotel Babylon - a drama based on the 2004 book of the same name, which follows the lives of workers at a glamorous five-star hotel. Both Lucy, 49, and Nigel appeared on the show in 2009, where it is reported they met on set.

Aside from appearing in the Bourne Ultimatum, Lucy has starred in The Bill, The IT Crowd, Midsomer Murders and more. The pair married just two years after meeting in 2011 and one year later, welcomed their daughter into the world. Over the 12 years of their marriage, they have always kept details of their life very private and avoided sharing on social media.

EastEnders' Jake Wood's snap of son has fans pointing out the pair's likeness

Nigel and Lucy at a press night performance of Pretty Woman in March 2020 (Dave Benett/Getty Images)

Nigel Harman with the Best Drama Star awards at the Inside Soap Awards 2023 (Mike Marsland/WireImage)

While Nigel is best known for his role on EastEnders, he is also recognised for a number of other roles including as Bradley Dawnson in Sky One’s Mount Pleasant, Max Cristie in Casualty or Mr Green in Downton Abbey. This week he collected the Best Drama Star trophy for his role in Casualty at the 2023 Inside Soap Awards, after announcing he would be leaving the role after a year. Announcing his time had come to an end, he said: He said: “My time on Casualty is done for the time being. I’m on screen until February and there are no plans for me to come back at the moment.”

After confirming he was taking part in the show in August on ITV ’s Lorraine, Nigel said: “I'm amazed, excited, and terrified to be doing Strictly. As an armchair fan of the show I have watched in awe as people have twirled and gyrated across the screen.” However he need not have worried with Nigel setting the bar high after topping the leaderboard last week (Saturday 24th) after scoring 32 points - even receiving an eight from Craig Revel Horwood for his routine.

Louise Lazell