‘My ex-husband and his girlfriend are FAMILY'

Keeley Hawes on family life and taking better care of herself as she gets older

- ROBYN MORRIS

Most people struggle to remain amicable with their exes and, when children are involved, it can often be even trickier. But this is far from the case for actor Keeley Hawes. She not only gets on famously with her ex-husband – with whom she shares her oldest son – and his new partner, but thinks of them as family.

‘Divorce doesn’t have to be messy,’ she says. ‘Like anything, it gets better with time.’

And, with her three children – Myles, 20, Maggie, 15, and Ralph, 13 – a marriage and a career to balance, it’s a good job Keeley, 44, has such an upliftingly positive outlook on life…

LOVE CONQUERS ALL

Keeley married her first husband, Spencer McCallum, in 2001 before they split in 2004. The former couple share son Myles and have remained close friends.

While she admits the decision to end her marriage was ‘horrible’, she has also said, ‘It was a long time ago now, and we have this wonderful son – and my ex-husband is still one of my best friends in the world.’

Spencer and his new partner live near Keeley and her husband, actor Matthew Macfadyen, and often babysit, with Keeley admitting, ‘They are just really wonderful, generous human beings who, ultimately, have always put my son and my other children first. And I can’t thank them enough, really. I love them, they’re my family, they’re my children’s family.’