Heidi Kadlecova and Hugh Bonneville started started dating months after confirming his marriage to Lulu Williams was over after 25 years and he says he feels ‘blessed’
Hugh Bonneville and Heidi Kadlecova were said to have been set up by crew and cast(Image: Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/Getty Images)
Hugh Bonneville has addressed his new relationship for the first time after finding love again following the end of his 25-year marriage.
The Downton Abbey favourite and his long-term wife Lulu Williams announced their split in September 2023. The end of their decades of marriage came after the star lost his mother, brother and father in the space of six traumatic years for the 62-year-old.
But happiness was ahead and in October 2024, Hugh confirmed he was in a new relationship with Heidi Kadlecova. According to reports, he has introduced to the vegan influencer by the cast and crew of movie, Go Away!. During their time on set, the pair were reportedly spotted sharing cuddles in between scenes.
The Paddington and Harry Potter actor has now spoken about moving on and said: “I do feel very blessed and very content to have started a new chapter. I am more accepting of the wheel of life and how fortunate I have been to have, on the whole, good health and to do something I love.”
Hugh separated from his wife of 25 years, Lulu Williams, back in 2023 (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
He was speaking to Saga Magazine, where Hugh reflected on the enormous grief he faced after his mother Patricia died. He said: “The admin of the funeral and everything numbed the grief for a while. I didn’t read any of the letters of commiseration or condolence we received until a year later, when I took them all with me to India.
“I was doing a film but had one weekend off, so I went on my own to this incredibly peaceful, quiet hotel in the middle of nowhere and read all the letters and absolutely let it all out. All the emotion. That was a very cathartic thing.”
Hugh and Heidi are going from strength to strength and immediately after his split, Hugh was rumoured to be dating Canadian actress Claire Rankin, known for her roles in the films, Molly’s Game and Seven in Heaven, as well as the TV show, Ally McBeal. They were spotted together in March, but decided not to address the rumours. By July, Hugh was spotted with Heidi.
Hugh and Lulu’s love story was the stuff of fairy tales, having first crossed paths in their teen years, only to rekindle their romance decades later thanks to a little matchmaking from Hugh’s mother, Patricia.
Hugh fondly recounted: “Lulu was running a marquee company… my mother rang her to hire some chairs or something and said, ‘Do you remember Hugh?’ and that was how we reconnected. It did infuriate me that I had to give full credit to my mum for reintroducing us.”
They lived near each other in England’s West Sussex and previously explained that they refused to let the glitz of Hollywood affect them.
Together, Hugh and Lulu are proud parents to their 23-year-old son, Felix. The couple chose to keep their family life relatively private but speaking to the magazine Parents, Hugh once opened up about fatherhood.
He said: “I think the absolute key one is don’t force your child to do the things you failed to do and wanted to do, like playing the piano or something. Another great piece of advice that someone once said to me when my little boy was arriving was, ‘Hug him close, and let him fly.'”
A source close to the couple said of their split: “It’s a shame as locally they were known to be a very sociable couple. Hugh has been away from home filming a lot this year. He has lost a bit of weight this summer, he was looking trim, tanned and relaxed,” they told The Sun.
