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Laura Carmichael has broken her silence on Sunday on her secret wedding to Downton Abbey co-star Michael C. Fox as she opened up about finding love on set.
The couple met while filming the fifth series of the ITV show in 2014, portraying Lady Edith and Andrew Parker.
In September, Michael revealed the pair had tied the knot secretly and they welcomed their first child into the world in 2021.
Now, Laura has opened up about her relationship for the first time and what working with Michael is really like as she spoke to Kirsty Wark on BBC Radio 4.
Asked wheather she found real life love on set, Laura replied: ‘I did yes. Michael Fox who plays Andy Parker, yeah he’s my fella!’
Michael’s character Andrew joined the staff at Downton Abbey as the second footman but was promoted to butler after Mr Carson’s official retirement.
Discussing their upstairs-downstairs roles, Laura said: ‘Yeah which is very funny how hard that is for people to get their heads around.
‘But you know we were in lots of scenes together, he’s just in the background holding a tray mostly for those ones when he’s at Highclere.
‘There was a funny time in the film when Michael was holding a very heavy tray of champagne glasses for you hours, you know as we were doing the scene and people were resetting.
‘And he noticed his shoelaces were undone so he said to me, “Do you mind just holding this for a second”.
‘And I must have been holding this tray a second before five different crew members came running up to me going, “Let me take that, you don’t need to hold that, Laura it’s fine”.
‘And we were like, he’s been holding it all day.’
Earlier this year, Michael confirmed he and Laura had tied the knot in recent years.
Speaking on NBC special Downton Abbey Celebrates The Grand Finale, Michael said: ‘I owe a lot to this show. I think so much of my life has been shaped around this show.’
Co-star Lesley Nicol then asked the couple: ‘What if someone said you’re actually going to find your wife and have a child? Life-changing stuff.’
Michael gushed: ‘I know. It’s incredible.’
However, Michael and Laura – who started dating in 2014 – haven’t said anything further about their marriage.
The Daily Mail has contacted Michael and Laura’s representatives for comment.
During their most recent outing together at the Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale premiere in London, Laura sported a dazzling ring on her ring finger.
Laura slipped into a quirky black and white lace gown as she joined her partner Michael, who looked dapper in a black blazer.
The stars gathered to celebrate the finale of the beloved period drama, after an incredible 15 years of the TV series and a trilogy of movies.
The couple are typically very private and it only emerged in May 2022 that they had become parents to son Luca previously.
A source told The Sun on Sunday at the time: ‘Laura and Michael absolutely love being parents and were grateful to have some time away from the limelight to enjoy the moment.
‘Laura’s taken motherhood in her stride and it’s added another string to her bow.’
Although the couple keep their romance under wraps, Laura gushed over how lucky she felt to have met Michael on the set of Downton Abbey.
In 2019, she told Town and Country: ‘I’ve fallen in love and made wonderful friends – how lucky am I?’
She said: ‘I think we’re lucky, and support and understand each other. It’s tough, so to have someone who’s got your back…
‘It can be really beautiful when you’re working together and chatting about stuff that’s hard and they get it.’
Laura tries to ‘have a normal life and play extraordinary lives’ and she’s been able to live by that philosophy thanks to the example set by other members of the Downton cast.
She said: ‘I feel like I’ve learnt that from a lot of Downton actors. Everyone prioritises their family and their friends and their home life. That’s why, when they get to go and do incredible things, they’re in a good place to work hard and be disciplined and be grateful.’
Michael has also addressed their relationship in the past, saying they liked to keep their romance separate from their jobs on Downton.
‘We’d go to work and we didn’t want it to be a thing in any way when we were working together,’ he told the Sunday Post.
‘It was great, though, to go to work with your best pal.’
