Helen McCrory and Damian Lewis’ love story: A fairy tale proposal in Paris to living an everlasting romance
A tragic end to a beautiful journey... that's how Helen McCrory's death feels. After a “heroic battle” with cancer, the award-winning ‘Peaky Blinders’ actress died at the age of 52. Sharing the heartbreaking news with her fans, her husband Damian Lewis — the beloved ‘Billions’ star — shared a poignant tribute and wrote, “I'm heartbroken to announce that after a heroic battle with cancer, the beautiful and mighty woman that is Helen McCrory has died peacefully at home, surrounded by a wave of love from family and friends.”
“She died as she lived. Fearlessly. God we love her and know how lucky we are to have had her in our lives. She blazed so brightly. Go now, Little One, into the air, and thank you,” he added.
Best known for playing the ruthless Aunt Polly in the BBC drama, she was remembered for her role in ‘His Dark Materials’ and ‘Harry Potter’. As millions mourn the heartbreaking news, here's a look at their love story and relationship through the years.
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Helen McCrory's early life
Born in 1968 in London, Helen McCrory was raised by Ann (née Morgans) — her Welsh mother and Iain McCrory — her diplomat father from Glasgow. Eldest of three children, she studied at Queenswood School near Hatfield, Hertfordshire and spent a year in Italy. Once she stepped back in British soil, she took lessons at the Drama Centre in London.
In 1990, she started her theatre career on stage and won many hearts with plays including ‘The Deep Blue Sea’ and ‘Medea’. The role that got her closer to her fans was Narcissa Malfoy — the wife of Lucius Malfoy and Draco's mother — in ‘Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince’ and ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 and Part 2’. She also played former Prime Minister Tony Blair's wife Cherie in the films ‘The Queen’ and ‘The Special Relationship’, and also gave voice to Stelmaria, Lord Asriel's snow leopard daemon in ‘His Dark Materials’.
How did Helen McCrory and Damian Lewis meet?
In 2003, Cupid struck his arrow and brought two superstars together during the theatre production Five Gold Rings at London's Almeida Theatre. The director of the play, Michael Attenborough, mulled over their early relationship — which began to blossom during rehearsals. He told Vogue: “Oh, there was something in the air that was just extraordinary. I witnessed two people falling for each other hook, line and sinker, which, of course, worked brilliantly in the play.”
Later, Damian Lewis shed light on their early attraction and said: “Helen and I partied very, very hard before we met and then we collided at the Almeida in 2004 and together we partied even harder. We used to lose entire evenings listening to jazz at Ronnie Scott’s.”
A love for the ages
Confessing her feelings for her husband, McCrory once said, “He just made me laugh a lot. And still does. Of course, everyone in life wants someone to love and be loved by, but I think I was always just engrossed and involved in work. And no, the timing was pure fluke, pure chance, it always is, isn’t it?” Not just her, Lewis was head over heels in love too and once said that “falling in love with a beautiful, talented actress and whisking her off to Paris to propose” was his fantasy.
“…when I was courting my lady wife, we went to listen to a lot of jazz, it was really lovely. And… I like the entire spectrum of jazz, but I’ve chosen us a more traditional swing jazz. This guy was really the first jazz super star, he was dead by the time he was 28. And, this is called Goose Pimples… It’s a fantastic track and it would remind me of jazz clubs with Helen.”
When did Helen McCrory and Damian Lewis get married?
How did Lewis pop the question? “I proposed to Helen in Paris. I tried to do it on the Pont Neuf — I was sweating bullets and wrestling in my overcoat pocket for the ring, which had got stuck in a little cellophane bag, but when I finally got it out, a gaggle of Japanese tourists surrounded us like a flock of seagulls, taking pictures, and the moment was totally destroyed,” he said in an interview.
Helen McCrory and Damian Lewis got married in July 2007 in a ceremony at Kensington and Chelsea Registry Office. Talking about the nuptials, McCrory said, “I did have a honeymoon. It lasted an evening. It was very short, but very lovely. We got married in the Kensington and Chelsea registry office, then walked down the King's Road and had lunch in a nice restaurant around the corner with 11 people. A very romantic day.”
Do Helen McCrory and Damian Lewis have children?
The pair gave birth to their daughter, Manon — born September 8, 2006 — and son, Gulliver — born November 2, 2007. The two lived in their homes in Tufnell Park in North London, and near Sudbury, Suffolk. Lewis added, “I now take Helen back to Paris for three days without our two kids every February for our anniversary. We walk about the city, and sit in bars drinking rosé.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, McCrory and Lewis lent support to Feed NHS, a program to give food from high street restaurants to the staff, and raised $1.3 million (£1 million) for the charity by early April of that year.