She wed her husband – also an actor – in 2006

Nicola Walker, star of Annika on BBC One, previously opened up about why she married her husband Barnaby Kay.

Telly fave Nicola, 55, indicated that the loss of a parent had influenced both of their views about getting hitched.

The Split actress also admitted that she and her actor hubby didn’t tie the knot for the most romantic of reasons. But, nonetheless, Nicola reflected on how they decided on marriage together – even if she isn’t the biggest fan of the idea of it…


Nicola Walker married fellow actor Barnaby Kay in 2006 (Credit: Splash News)

Nicola Walker on marrying husband Barnaby

Unforgotten star Nicola told the Radio Times in 2022 that pragmatism was a significant motive for their marriage.

She and Barnaby – who appeared in New Tricks – wed in 2006 after reportedly being in a relationship for 20 years. She said the nuptials were a “tiny family thing”.

They share a son, Harry, together. And Nicola said that formalising their partnership seemed like the right approach after Harry’s birth.

After we had a child, we ought to get married.

She explained: “Me and my husband, because we both lost a parent young, we thought, after we had a child, we ought to get married, in case one of us dies, so that the legalities are clear.”

Speaking as she promoted her series at the time, Marriage, Nicola added: “[It] is not the most romantic reason to get married but is probably the only thing that would have got me to sign a piece of paper. I’m not a great advocate of marriage in real life.”

Despite her reservations, Nicola joked about how her Marriage co-star Sean Bean – who has been married five times – ‘brings up the average’ for weddings between them.

‘It didn’t paint us in a very good light’

However, in December 2024, Nicola indicated in an interview with The Times that her previous comments about getting married “came out very strangely”.

In fact, she added: “I don’t think any of my family, or Barney, have forgiven me. It didn’t paint us in a very good light, or our marriage, but we really did get married because we’d had a child together.”

Death of Nicola’s mum

Nicola also touched on the loss of her mum, who was 54 when she died, after years of suffering with multiple sclerosis.

Nicola reflected: “It took me a long time to recover from her not being there. And I put things off because she wasn’t there. This is getting a bit bleak. I don’t mean to be morbid, but I put off having a child and the marriage thing because I’d just think, I’d like my mum to be here. I’m doing things and I feel she would have been here and been such a big part of it. So I think I did. I think I put things off. I felt like I was betraying her on some level by doing things that she couldn’t be a part of.”


Barnaby Kay sharing a scene in New Tricks with Tamzin Outhwaite (Credit: BBC)

Who is Nicola Walker’s husband?

London-born Barnaby, 56, is also an actor.

He comes from a family of performers, with both his father and grandfather having been actors, too.

He has appeared in a range of stage productions in many London theatres. These include companies associated with the Donmar Warehouse, National Theatre, Almeida Theatre, Soho Theatre and Hampstead Theatre.

He also regularly features in TV shows, having appeared in the likes of New Tricks, Doctor Who, Cracker, Minder and Spooks.