Alex Kingston, best known for her roles on ER and Doctor Who, has seen another wave of popularity thanks to her appearance on Strictly, partnered with South African professional Johannes Radebe, and her brilliant samba in week two. However, many of the actress' fans may not know that she was previously in a relationship with an A-list actor for fourteen years, and the relationship became rather tumultuous, especially after her husband had an affair with one of his onstage co-stars. Scroll down to find out about Alex Kingston's 'fragile' marriage to her Oscar-nominated ex-husband…
Alex Kingston's A-list husband
The Strictly star first met Conclave actor Ralph Fiennes when the pair were at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 1983, and married ten years later. However, the marriage very quickly collapsed when Ralph had an affair with his Hamlet co-star, Francesca Annis, who was playing his mother onstage. He left Alex in 1996, and the divorce was finalised by 1997.
© FilmMagicAt the time, she told Daily Mail: "I was feeling worthless, that I would never find anyone else as good as my husband, which is ridiculous, but I had so little self-esteem. Divorce is awful, but it is also something I don't regret happening to me because it has shaped who I am now."
Fortunately, reflecting on the relationship has given Alex new perspectives. She previously said: "We were like strangers – very fragile. His mother was dying and somehow we thought that the wedding was going to heal everything. But that was crazy, of course."
© Ron Galella Collection via GettyIn 2012, Alex told The Standard that she had kept her distance emotionally and physically from Ralph and Francesca's relationship: "I know nothing about it, other than that I'm told they are no longer together. I feel no connection to him or her now. It's been so long. I can't quite believe I was ever married to him."
Alex Kingston's current marriage
The Strictly star married German writer Florian Haertel in 1999, after moving to Los Angeles to begin filming ER, but the pair separated in 2009, finalising their divorce in 2013. Two years later, Alex remarried, to writer Jonathan Stamp, with the ceremony taking place in the All Saints Anglican Church in Rome, Italy. Since then, the pair have opted to keep their marriage away from the limelight.
