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Carol Kirkwood's famous ex-husband: All you need to know about Breakfast star's first marriage

The BBC Breakfast star was married to an Olympic athlete

carol kirkwood wearing purple
Nicky Morris
TV and film writer
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Carol Kirkwood is a firm favourite amongst BBC Breakfast viewers and regularly wakes up the nation with the weather forecast.

The 60-year-old is the longest-serving presenter on the programme having joined back in 1998, making her a familiar face to many up and down the UK. While the star has shared glimpses of her personal life every now and then – even announcing her engagement to fiancé Steve live on the show – how much do you know about her ex-husband? 

WATCH: Carol Kirkwood confirms engagement live on BBC Breakfast

Who is Carol Kirkwood's ex-husband?

While Carol is set to wed former police officer Steve, this wouldn't be her first marriage. 

The weather presenter was previously married to Jimmy Kirkwood, a former field hockey and cricket player from Northern Ireland. The pair tied the knot in 1990 and went their separate ways 18 years later in 2008.

carol kirkwood steve© Photo: Rex

Carol is engaged to former police officer Steve

Jimmy, 61, is a successful athlete and was even inducted into the Irish Hockey Association Hall of Fame in 2014. He won a gold medal playing field hockey for team GB at the 1988 Summer Olympics and was also a member of the Ireland team that were silver medallists at the 1978 EuroHockey Junior Championship.

MORE: BBC Breakfast star Carol Kirkwood's special bond with newly revealed fiancé

MORE: Carol Kirkwood reveals romantic proposal details

While appearing on Strictly Come Dancing back in 2015, Carol spoke about life as a single woman after her marriage came to an end. "I was married for a long time and I got married quite young so it's nice doing things I have the freedom to do now," the Scottish star told The Sun.

"If I want to go out to the theatre or go out with friends for dinner, I've got that freedom."

Speaking about her divorce in a more recent interview from 2018, she said: "I found myself when I got divorced. I started to do things and to think, 'I'm not going to say no, I'm going to say yes!'

carol engaged© Photo: BBC

Carol announced her engagement on BBC Breakfast

"I'm braver now. I've flown with the Red Arrows, jumped out of planes with the Red Devils. When I was younger I would never have done that because I'd have thought, 'Too dangerous!' Now I think, 'Oh, you've got to live your life!'" she told the Radio Times.

In her 2021 book, Under The Greek Moon, Carol admitted that her divorce from Jimmy was "all so shocking to me", and explained how working at BBC Breakfast helped take her mind off of it.

"In a funny way though, that helped with the healing process," she explained. "I put my grief into a compartment which I kept separate from my work, otherwise I’d have ended up in a puddle of tears. Work kept me going."

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