John Nettles, 81, resides with his wife of 29 years, Catheryn Sealey, in Devon, but his only child, Emma Martins, from his previous marriage lives over 200 miles away. Here's everything you need to know…
When John landed his now-famous Bergerac role, he relocated to Jersey for filming, taking his daughter with him – and she never left the island! Now she has two children of her own and has built her life there.
Speaking to the MailOnline, John divulged that Emma has one boy and one girl. "I try to see them as often as I can," he added.
Jersey has a total population of 103,000 and in 2021, exactly half the population (50 per cent) was born in Jersey, while Emma would sit in the 29 per cent born in the British Isles other than Jersey. According to a 2024 report, £749,000 is the average three-bedroom property price, which is actually considerably more expensive than where her father lives in Devon, where the average home is £307,311.
© ShutterstockCareer inspiration
In an interesting turn of events, Emma now works for the States of Jersey Police and this interest in this career path came when her father was meeting with officers for his role as troubled detective Jim Bergerac.
In a 2024 chat with The Telegraph, John clarified that Emma now works as a data protection officer and was heading the Scottish Government's inquiry into the use of mobile messaging apps during the pandemic.
While they no longer live close by, Emma regularly visits Devon, which is where John and Catheryn live in a 15th-century longhouse.
Before Devon, John lived in London, but a strange reason brought that to an abrupt end – his noisy pet donkey! "Hector's a delightful little fellow, a rescue donkey from Galway. We'd put him in the garden of our rather posh house near Stratford, but he made a lot of noise and our neighbours, quite rightly, weren't happy," the actor revealed to Great British Life.
Now the couple have three dogs, three horses and two donkeys at their idyllic village property and they enjoy spending time with their animals.
Father-daughter love
The actor, who also played DCI Tom Barnaby in Midsomer Murders, has spoken candidly about his amazing relationship with his only child, calling her his "best friend". In an interview with The Express, he said: "My best friend is my daughter Emma, next to my wife Cath, of course. I have a legion of friends, and the best ones are my immediate family, which is very clichéd but true."
