Samuel West is back on our screens as cantankerous veterinary surgeon Siegfried Farnon in the new series of Channel 5's beloved period drama, All Creatures Great and Small.
The London-born actor is known for his impressive TV and film career, having appeared in a wide range of blockbuster films and hit television series, including Notting Hill, Darkest Hour, and Mr Selfridge. But did you know that Samuel's partner also works in the industry? Keep reading to find out all about his other half and family life.
Who is Samuel West's partner?
Samuel is in a long-term relationship with award-winning playwright and screenwriter Laura Wade.
Laura, 46, was born in Bedford but grew up in Sheffield.
Laura found her talent for writing at a young age, with her first play, titled Limbo, produced at the Sheffield Crucible Studio Theatre in 1996 when she was around 19/20 years old.
© Dan Wooller/ShutterstockAfter studying drama at Bristol University, Laura went on to publish various plays, including Colder Than Here, which premiered at The Soho Theatre in 2005, and her 2010 play Posh, which began a sell-out run at the Royal Court Theatre, before later moving to the Duke of York's Theatre in the West End.
More recently, Laura released Home, I'm Darling, which premiered at Theatr Clwyd in 2018 and starred The It Crowd's Katherine Parkinson. The play transferred to the National Theatre for a summer run before going on to win Best Comedy at the 2019 Laurence Olivier Awards.
© Photo: RexAnother of her more recent works is The Watsons, which was adapted from Jane Austen's unfinished novel of the same name. The play premiered at the Chichester Festival Theatre in November 2018 and was directed by her partner Samuel.
Away from the theatre, Laura works as a screenwriter.
Her latest project is as a writer and executive producer of Disney+'s upcoming series Rivals, which stars David Tennant and Aidan Turner and is based on the novel by Jilly Cooper.
© Robert ViglaskySamuel's family life and children
Samuel has been with his partner Laura since 2007, although they briefly separated in 2011. The couple share two daughters, aged nine and six.
Opening up about his decision to have children, he told The Times in a recent interview: "I just got to the point where I didn't like being the most important person in my life as much as I had. And that's a good place to start having children."
© Channel 5The star has also opened up about bringing up his girls to be "strong women". "I'm pleased we had daughters – I've tried to do things that make them feel strong," he told The Telegraph in 2021. "They both have my partner's surname, and we're very into unisex clothing for them; I'm not really into a gendered upbringing. Strong is the new pretty, as they say, so I hope that girls' time has come."
He continued: "As a white, middle-class male, I've had the run of the green for many centuries. If I'm losing to equally talented women now, it's about bloody time. There are lots of problems for women, but the world is finally waking up to the potential of half of humanity. Taking the toys from the boys."
