Real life soap romances from hidden weddings to bitter Corrie love triangle
With long filming schedules and intimate scenes, it is no surprise that some soap stars have fallen for each other in real life. And it's clear that those living in soapland just understand each other, with relationships blossoming across rival shows.
On Monday, it was confirmed that and , known for their roles on and Emmerdale respectively, had officially married after three years together. The newlyweds met in the audience of back in 2019 and welcomed their first child together two years later.
But the couple aren't the first soap stars to have found love with their castmates on the cobbles at , over a pint in ' Queen Vic or in the serenity of the countryside. Over the years, soapstar babies have been welcomed and lavish weddings have been had, however some romances have ended with the level of drama that rivals the soaps.
Here, The Mirror looks at some of the biggest love stories and splits that happened out of sight of the cameras...
Amy Walsh and Toby-Alexander Smith
Amy and Toby-Alexander tied the knot in Montenegro at the end of August and today shared exclusive snaps with OK! of their venue and custom wedding dresses and suits. The pair fell for each other after 'fate' brought them together when they were both in the Strictly Come Dancing audience in 2019.
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Amy and Toby-Alexander tied the knot abroad after meeting in 2019 (Toby-Alexander Smith/Instagram)
The pair have a daughter together (DAILY MIRROR)Toby and Amy were both sitting in the front row of the studio where Amy was supporting her former castmate Kelvin Fletcher while Toby was cheering on his co-star Emma Barton. Jamie Laing was supposed to be part of the line-up that year but ended up breaking his ankle before he could take part. He was later replaced by Kelvin Fletcher, who went on to win the Glitterball Trophy with his dance partner Oti Mabuse.
According to Amy, Toby wasn't meant to be in the audience that week. "After the show, someone sent me a screenshot of us in the audience and I sent it to my best friend and joked, 'Me and my future husband,' just thinking it was going to be a date. But after our first date I was like, 'This is it!'" she previously said.
A few months after their encounter, the country was in lockdown due to the pandemic, so they were forced to go long distance with their new relationship. But Toby quickly made the decision to move into her home. In 2021, Amy fell pregnant with the couple's first child, welcoming daughter Bonnie in December.
Amy, who plays Tracy Metcalfe, told OK! magazine at the time: "It feels as though the way everything happened was meant to be. I thought I might struggle with fertility, so for pregnancy to happen quite easily and when I wanted – I was gobsmacked. We feel incredibly lucky...". In August 2002, Toby-Alexander revealed he dropped down on one knee to propose to her during their sunny holiday in Ibiza.
Charley Webb and Matthew Wolfenden
The couple met when Matthew, 43, joined Emmerdale four years after Charley, 35, in 2006. He popped the question on Christmas Day in 2009 and they went on to have three sons; Buster, Bowie and Ace.
However, when Emmerdale writers considered getting their characters together on screen, the pair was quick to shut it down. "They once told us they were considering it and we were the first to ring up and ask for it not to happen!" Matthew told OK!.
Charley Webb and Matthew Wolfenden share three sons (miss_charleywebb/Instagram)"It's too much - living with each other, working with each other and then being romantically linked in the show together. Also, they are characters who wouldn't suit,” Charley agreed.
Finally after a nine-year engagement, the couple invited friends and family - including Charley's actor brother Jamie Lomas - to her "30th birthday party", only to surprise them with a wedding. "That moment when we announced what we were doing and seeing everybody’s reaction is the best moment of my life," she told OK! magazine.
Rob Mallard and Daniel Brocklebank
Everyone was buzzing when Rob Mallard and Daniel Brocklebank confirmed their romance back in 2017, but it isn't always a happy ending for soapstar romances. Corrie fans were pleasantly surprised when the Daniel Osbourne actor started a relationship with the Billy Mayhew star.
Daniel and Rob started dating back in 2017 (WireImage)
The pair are still friends (Dave Nelson)The pair seemed smitten when Rob said his beau was "the best thing I've taken home this year" while picking up the Best Newcomer gong at the British Soap Awards in 2017. They both looked very dashing while making their red carpet debut together at the British LGBT awards, but sadly their romance came to and end after just two months
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Sources close to the couple told The Sun: "It was a lot of pressure for both of them to be working on the same show and going out - in the end something had to give. They decided to part ways a couple of weeks ago but they’re still great friends and hope to remain that way." After their amicable split, Daniel confirmed he'd moved on with former Mr Gay UK Stuart Hatton, but he was left heartbroken again when they split up.
Jacqueline Jossa and Tony Discipline
The real world and soapland crossed over when this pair started dating. They first met on set in 2011 when Tony Discipline arrived on the Square as Tyler Moon, while Jacqueline Jossa was in the role of Lauren Branning.
Heartthrob Tyler had a relationship with Whitney Dean and one night stand with Lauren - but Tony and Jacqueline's relationship went on for a bit longer than that. Although it wasn't love at first sight, as Jacqueline wasn't taken by Tony when they first met at an audition.
Jacqueline Jossa dated EastEnders co-star Tony Discipline (Getty)
The couple split after 18 months together (Getty Images)"Tony came up and said he was auditioning for EastEnders. I didn’t believe him, though when I walked back to my mates, I was like, ‘Did you see his teeth?! He’s well fit.’," she told The Sun. "But I left it. I didn’t think he was going to join EastEnders. He even added me on Facebook and I deleted him!
"Then a couple of months later, I came into work and there he was. I called my cousin and said, ‘Do you remember Fit Boy? He is in the building.'" After 18 months together the pair split after "growing apart", with Jacqueline going on to marry TOWIE star Dan Osborne and have two daughters together.
Alan Halsall and Lucy-Jo Hudson and Tisha Merry
Alan Halsall's love life hasn't been as colourful as that of Tyrone Dobbs but it's still been filled with soap levels of drama. While on set he struck up a romance with co-star Lucy-Jo Hudson, who played Katy Harris from 2002 until 2005, with the pair getting married in 2009 then welcoming daughter Sienna-Rae into the world in 2013.
Alan Halsall and Lucy Jo Hudson were married (Manchester Evening News)They briefly split two-a-half years later, got back together after several weeks apart, but it was over for good when Lucy-Jo announced they were in the process of divorcing in May 2018. The exact reason for their split was never revealed - with Alan reportedly joking to pals he was having a 'mid-life crisis', which ironically is what on-screen Tyrone's scandalous affair with Alina has been referred to.
Things started off very amicably between the former couple, who both vowed to work together for the sake of their daughter. "We're so amicable. We get on and we speak every day. He comes round for a brew. We will maintain as mummy and daddy," Lucy-Jo told the Loose Women at the time.
"I'm up and down. It's difficult. But we're amicable and talking daily. We will remain friends and I genuinely mean that. We still care for each other." Lucy-Jo moved on with boyfriend Lewis Divine, but things had clearly turned sour by February 2020 when Alan appeared to lash out at his ex and her new man in a scathing Instagram post.
Alan seemed to take a swipe at Lewis after he referred to Sienna-Rae as his own daughter after Lucy-Jo gave birth to their first child, son Carter. Celebrating becoming a dad, Lewis wrote: "Our Sienna is delighted and is already making the best big sister, just like I knew she would!"
Alan appeared to take great issue with this, writing a furious Instagram story: "You're welcome to keep the lying cheating one & call her your own! But not my daughter." The Mirror reached out to representatives of Alan and Lucy for comment at the time.
Following on from the drama, Lucy-Jo claimed her ex "must have regretted" striking out at her and Lewis, telling OK! : "I had literally just given birth to Carter when he posted that so I didn't see it and my head was elsewhere. He quickly deleted it so he must have regretted it. I didn't bother bringing it up with him. Lew and I were both too focused on Carter, so it just didn't get our attention." Seemingly in response, Alan shared a snap of the sunset with the words "No Regrets" written in the corner.
Alan has admitted he doesn't have much communication with his ex anymore apart from to discuss their daughter but they appear to be on better terms. While opening up about co-parenting Sienna, Alan did point out that she now has her parents and their partners to look after her.
"There's always going to be ups and downs with a blended family," he told OK! Magazine in July last year. "So long as Sienna comes first in all of it, that's all that matters. Sienna's got her mum and dad, and she's also got Lewis and Tisha. It's just a case that everybody loves her.
"Of course there will be differences of opinion; so long as we're in that loving way when Sienna is around. We don't have a great deal of communication, it's only ever about Sienna and that's all it ever needs to be." It's clear Alan has a thing for his co-stars as he went on to strike up a relationship with Tisha Merry, who played Steph Britton, back in 2019. The pair went public with their romance a month later by posting a snap of them laughing together at the wedding of Sam Aston (Chesney Brown).
During the joint interview with girlfriend Tisha, who moved in with him back in 2019, they also discussed plans to have their own kids together. "He’ll be so amazing," she told OK! "When we were still friends, I got asked to babysit and asked Alan to come along. We got there and it was just Alan babysitting.
"He’s such a good dad; he’s so caring and loving. He notices everything and his communication with Sienna is so strong. I would love that for our child if we have one." She also opened up about being a step-mum to Alan's daughter, saying: "In all honesty I've had a few times where I've thought 'Oh my god, my life has changed so much'. It's crazy but it's changing for the better.
"When I first got together with Alan and I became a bigger part of Sienna's life, my dad said 'this will be the making of you.' It's tricky when you've gone from being a single girl with no one else to think about to someone with a family. It's the best thing in the world but it can be really daunting."
Nadia Sawalha and Marc Bannerman
Nadia and Marc met on the set of EastEnders (BBC)Nadia Sawalha was in a relationship with her EastEnders co star Marc Bannerman, who played Gianni di Marco from 1998 to 2000, opposite her character Annie Palmer. Annie and Gianni were together on screen and off, as the characters had a brief romance in Walford, despite rumours on the Square they may have had the same father until a DNA test was done.
The Loose Women panellist had a real love story with her EastEnders co-star for three years before they broke up. Nadia has credited Marc for helping her through a horrific time in her life after the death of her first husband Justin Mildwater, who took his own life in December 1997 a few months after they split.
"If it wasn’t for Marc I don’t know what I’d have done," she told OK! Magazine. Nadia is now married to TV producer Mark Adderley and they have two daughters together.
Tina O'Brien and Bruno Langley and Ryan Thomas
Todd discovered Jason in bed with Sarah, while in real life Tina started dating Ryan after breaking up with Bruno (Press Association)Tina O'Brien's love life has been eerily similar to that of Sarah Platt at times and would have made a dramatic Coronation Street storyline. Sarah had a relationship with Todd Grimshaw before they split and she moved on with his brother Jason, and life imitated art as Tina also had off-screen relationships with both of the lads.
When she was 17, Tina had a romance with Bruno, who played her character's boyfriend Todd, but things came to a natural end after a year. Then she started dating Bruno's pal and on-screen brother Ryan Thomas, which required the trio to carefully manage their feelings.
"It was five months later when I got together with Ryan and I was worried about it as he's a friend of Bruno. But we worked hard to make sure there wasn't any tension between the three of us," Tina told The Mirror in 2007. In a strange twist of fate, Tina actually first fell for Ryan when she was a 13-year-old at a Saturday drama club in Manchester but there was was no instant attraction when they were thrown together again on the set of Corrie in 2003.
Eventually Tina started to warm to Ryan and after a night out they had a romantic kiss goodnight on a doorstep after a night out - with the Sarah Platt actress confessing they initially "tried to fight it". Things soon turned serious and they became an official couple, but their loving relationship was also tempestuous and they got in a lot of arguments.
Ryan and Tina started a relationship (PA)
The couple got married on screen in Coronation Street (PA)"When we first started going out we were always arguing. I have a really bad temper and we had big fall-outs," said Tina in 2007. "We had a massive row once at his place when he had the builders in. They must have thought I was mental because I was screaming at the top of my lungs at him, 'Why don't you eff off.'
"I don't even know what we argued about. It was always over the smallest of things. "We never split up but I did occasionally say, 'That's it, I'm never speaking to you again!' "We still have big, big rows but we haven't had one for a while. We don't let things get to us now as we talk about what's making us unhappy. We're like an old married couple."
When Tina left Corrie in 2007 she felt not working alongside her boyfriend and seeing him less would make the time they did have together more special. A year later the couple's daughter, Scarlet was born, but their relationship came to a devastating end just months before her first birthday.
"He said he didn't love me any more," Tina told new! magazine, admitting they had struggled with the new dynamic of parenthood. "He said I didn't do it for him any more. Those were his words. I was absolutely devastated. He said he didn't want the responsibility of a relationship with me."
Tina with her new man Adam (Instagram/tinaob83)Despite the bitter split, they managed to build bridges and Tina even invited Ryan to her wedding to new man Adam Crofts in 2018. Tina started seeing Adam in 2011 and three years later they welcomed baby boy Beau, with a happy Ryan saying: "Adam is cool, he's just a lovely guy. As a stepfather in Scarlett's life, I've hit the jackpot. She adores him."
While Tina praised her ex and husband for making things work for the sake of Scarlett - and they even spent a Christmas together. "It’s taken a lot of years and a lot of biting my tongue. Seriously, though, it’s mainly down to Adam and Ryan," she said.
"It helps that everyone has moved on and is in a happy place. Ryan is really happy and we are happy, so there aren’t any issues. "For the sake of Scarlett, it has been well worth preserving [our relationship] and choosing our battles." Meanwhile, Ryan is engaged to former TOWIE star Lucy Mecklenburgh and they are parents to son Roman Ravello Thomas, was born in March last year.
Lucy Benjamin and Steve McFadden
Lucy and Steve dated for four years (Press Association)
They split in 2003 (Rex Features)Lisa Fowler and Phil Mitchell found love on EastEnders and had daughter Louise together - and their romance spilled out into the real world. Lucy Benjamin and Steve McFadden struck up a real-life romance and dated between 1999 and 2003.
Despite breaking up, the pair are clearly still on good terms as Lucy has been back to work on EastEnders multiple times over the last decade, including last year when Lisa helped daughter Louise leave with her baby. When asked about working with Steve again on Loose Women in 2017, Lucy explained they didn't need to think about the past.
"It was more about the history between Lisa and Phil and there is so much water under the bridge with those two people," she said. "You just resort back to their storylines and the things they have gone through as characters. We didn't have to think about me and Steve and the old days. There is so much stuff between Lisa and Phil. It was easy to play that.
"It was strange really, but lovely to be working with Steve, Tish and Natalie Cassidy again. It was just like being with mates. They have been doing fabulous work and I knew that they would look after me and have my back upon my return." Lucy has been married to oil businessman Richard Taggart since 2006, while Steve is in a relationship with girlfriend Karen Cairns.
Sally Carman and Joe Duttine
Sally and Joe are engaged (sally_carman__/Instagram)
The couple will be getting married next year (INSTAGRAM)This amazing relationship was quite hard to get our heads around because of the characters involved. Sally Carman struck up a romance with Joe Duttine on set back in 2018 - with their castmates thinking it was a match made in heaven.
But what made it quite funny is that Joe's character, Tim Metcalfe, is married to Sally Webster, who is best friends with Abi Franklin, played by Sally Carman. They moved in the following year and got engaged in March last year - with Joe tweeting a cute photo of the pair with glasses of champagne and an emerald ring on Sally's finger.
Speaking to Lorraine Kelly on Good Morning Britain, Sally opened up about how they first became close to one another and admitted it was a slow burner. "We were friends for a while but then we started sharing puddings and I thought maybe something is on the boil."
However, she admitted that she was pleased that they didn't share too many scenes together. She explained: "It's much better just because Johnny is a bit of a joker and he's very funny and he can put you a bit off your stride!" The couple had to put off their big day due to the pandemic however managed to finally tie the knot last year before enjoying a lavish honeymoon in Italy.
Sue Nicholls and Mark Eden
Sue Nicholls and Mark Eden got married (Daily Mirror)
The couple had a very romantic first meeting (The People)Coronation Street legend Sue Nicholls fell in love with one of Weatherfield's most notorious villains. Her character, Audrey Roberts, has had many love interests including conman Lewis and her beloved husband Alf Roberts.
But in real life, Sue started a relationship with 60s heartthrob Mark Eden, the actor behind Rita's villainous husband Alan Bradley, who was killed by a tram in Blackpool. It was a rather romantic beginning as the couple met under a cherry tree at a party in 1983 and became closer when Mark also worked on the cobbles between 1986 and 1989.
The pair didn't have any children together but Mark had three kids from his previous relationships who Sue adores. "Mark's got grown-up children, who are delightful We've been together 17 years this July - longest he's ever been with anybody - and married for the last seven. We met under a cherry tree in Mills & Boon fashion, at a party," Sue said in 2000.
"I was wearing one of those Grecian dresses you could send off for, from a catalogue. He was in the middle of, sadly, parting from his second wife and he was lovely, and that was it. I did feel an instant kind of something. "The first time we went out I nearly crashed the car, he made me laugh so much. I had to swerve into the verge. He stayed that night.
"But if you can't be a bit daring in your late thirties, when can you? And it's the only time I've ever chased anyone. He is very romantic. A very handsome man."
Sadly, Mark has passed away (PA)The couple, who were married in 1993, had to spend a lot of time apart as Mark worked in London while Sue was in Manchester - but lived together in their later years. "I met Mark late in life – I was nearly 40 – so children just didn’t happen," Sue said in an interview in 2019.
"As much as I’d have liked it, I didn’t have family to bring up and worry about …maybe that’s helped keep me young." But Sue insisted she was not one to look back with any regrets on the way her own life has played out.
"It’s fine – I’ve never dwelled on it, or thought how hard done by I was, because you just never know what else is going to happen in life," she said, adding: "All you can do is take each decade as it comes – and Mark is lovely." Sue said her leading man was an "old romantic" but insisted: "We’re not sweetness and light all the time – that would be horrendous.
"But Mark is very romantic. He plays the piano, so we have a sing – possibly after a couple of glasses of wine. Mark serenades me with Frank Sinatra, George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, all those romantic numbers." Sadly, Mark died on New Year's Day in 2021 following a battle with Alzheimer's and being hospitalised in November.
Jeff Hordley and Zoe Henry
Zoe Henry and Jeff Hordley are together in real life (Twitter)Emmerdale's Zoe, 50, and Jeff, 53, met at drama school years before joining Emmerdale, and for Jeff, it was love at first sight. "We met at drama school in 1994. I saw Zoe and realised she was the girl for me," he previously said.
Jeff popped the question the night Zoe won the Best Actress in a Leading Role award at the Manchester Evening News' theatre awards and they married in a low-key ceremony in 2003. Daughter Violet arrived in 2005 followed by son Stan in 2008, and the couple enjoy a quiet private life, growing vegetables on their allotment.
On-screen, Zoe - who plays vet Rhona - has said she prefers not to have scenes with Jeff's bad boy character Cain. She previously told Inside Soap: "There was another scene where Rhona got a bit drunk and tried it on with Cain in the Woolpack. That was horrendous to film, as I was so nervous about having to work with Jeff! I think we probably both prefer not to work together!"
Charlie De Melo and Nicola Thorp
Pat Phelan's daughter was dating Toyah's boyfriend (Instagram)
Nicola and Charlie had a whirlwind romance (Instagram)Work and personal life started to cross over when Charlie De Melo and Nicola Thorp started dating. The Imran Habeeb actor had a whirlwind romance with Nicola Thorp, who played Pat Phelan's surprisingly normal daughter Nicola Rubenstein.
They had been close friends for around 10 years before sparking up a relationship during their time together on the cobbles. And it proved to be hard dating a man playing a "smug, womanising lawyer" when his character started dating both Leanne and Toyah Battersby at the same time.
The lothario got in hot water when the women realised he was seeing both of them at the same time, then devised a cunning plan to catch him out by offering a threesome. Back in September 2018, Nicola confessed she was "jealous" of her boyfriend having steamy scenes with Georgia Taylor and Jane Danson, who play Toyah and Leanne.
"Let's just say I get very, very jealous of Charlie because Georgia and Jane and are absolutely gorgeous. He's a lucky man," she said. Speaking to The Sun, she added: "I'm loving watching the storyline. I find it really funny, and I'm just super proud of him. I'm proud of the whole team and I'm really, really enjoying watching that classic Corrie comedy of errors."
Things looked to be going well for the couple, who posted sweet photos together on social media, but cracks seemingly started to emerge when Nicola briefly left the cobbles. Then in January 2019, reporters emerged that the couple had split, with a source telling The Sun they decided to "cool things" after growing apart
"Nicola's brief departure from the soap earlier this summer put a strain on their relationship, even though she's returned to the cobbles now," said the insider. "They've decided to remain pals - although they aren't hanging out as much platonically as they they did before they were a couple and have been tending to go to separate.
"As long as it doesn't get awkward at work they're happy, that's their main concern, they also won't be flaunting any new partners in front of each other, they plan to be very professional." Nicola only spent a few more months on the soap before leaving for good - and confessed the being on Corrie had ruined her sex life. As well as being unable to use apps like Tinder, she claimed men in bars would ask if she was "Phelan's daughter" and just wanted to ask to take a selfie with her "for their nan".
Joe Swash and Kara Tointon
Joe and Cara played brother and sister on EastEnders (Daily Mirror)EastEnders' Joe, 41, joined the cast as Mickey Miller in 2003 and met Kara, 39, when she arrived to play Mickey's sister Dawn Swann in 2005. She dated co-star James Alexandrou (Martin Fowler) for a year.
However, love finally blossomed between Kara and Joe just before he flew to Australia to take part in I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! in November 2008. And he could hardly believe his luck, telling Now magazine he was "punching well above" his weight.
Kara was equally smitten, revealing she had marriage on her mind and even hoped to start a family with the actor. But in May 2010 the devastated actress pulled the plug and apparently fled to Marbella with friends to "get her head together". "It was all down to me, and nothing to do with Kara," he confessed at the time.
"She genuinely does everything right. It was my fault it broke down. I didn't know what I had until she was gone." Kara has since welcomed two children with her ex-fiancé Marius Jensen, who she is believed to have secretly split from last year.
While Joe and wife Stacey Solomon are the new power couple, having welcomed three children together with their latest baby, Belle, born earlier this year in February.
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