Thursday

16-10-2025 Vol 19

Emmy winner Stephen Graham has been on our screens for decades – and one woman has always been right by his side

British actor and film producer Stephen Graham cleaned up at the 2025 Emmys earlier this week, scoring two awards for his acting and writing in the Netflix original series Adolescence. 

As he took to the stage to accept his Emmy Award for Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series, he emotionally declared “this kind of thing doesn’t normally happen to a kid like me”.

“I”m just a mix-raced kid from a block of flats in a place called Kirkby, so for me to be here today in front of my peers and to be acknowledged by you is the utmost humbling thing I could ever imagine in my life and it shows you that any dream is possible,” he continued.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 14: Stephen Graham accepts the Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie award for "Adolescence" onstage during the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards at Peacock Theater on September 14, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Stephen Graham shouted out his “adorable wife” as he accepted the honour. (Getty)

From those humble beginnings, Graham has navigated several high profile roles on his road to his first-ever Emmy win – doing it all alongside his wife and “soul mate,” Hannah Walters. 

The 52-year-old was raised in Kirkby, a small town in Lancashire in England by his mum and step-father. 

In the 1990s, he pursued acting training at Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance where he met the woman who would become his wife.

At the time, they were just frrends and it wasn’t until Walters was preparing to move to Spain that Graham finally confessed his love.

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LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 08: Hannah Walters and Stephen Graham attend the Virgin Media British Academy Television Awards at The Royal Festival Hall on May 08, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Karwai Tang/WireImage)
Graham met his wife Hannah Walters at acting school. (WireImage)

“After a while we just thought: this is daft, do you know what I mean? We like each other, we should get together,” he said in an interview with Leicestershire Live in 2018.

They later welcomed their two kids, Grace in 2005 and Alfie in 2007.

Both actors, the pair continued to pursue their careers alongside each other as they navigated their relationship and their new lives as parents. 

STUDIO CITY, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 12: (L-R) Alfie Graham, Stephen Graham, Grace Graham and Hannah Walters attend Netflix's 2025 Emmy's Toast at Private Residence on September 12, 2025 in Studio City, California. (Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Netflix)
The couple with their now grown up children. (Getty Images for Netflix)

After years of small parts and some notable roles in Snatch (2000) and Gangs of New York (2002) directed by Martin Scorsese, Graham made his big break in 2006 as Andrew ‘Combo’ Gascoigne in the film This Is England.

Walters also starred in the film as a shop assistant.

The pair both went on to return for the TV sequels of the film in later years and have collaborated on several projects together.

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Stephen Graham starred in the Pirates of the Caribbean
Stephen Graham starred as scrum in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

In 2011, Graham appeared as Scrum in the 2011 film Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and returned to the role for the 2017 film Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales in which he starred alongside his wife who starred as Beatrice.

Graham has also starred in Rocketman, the biographical drama based on Elton John’s life, Snatch, Peaky Blinders and Matilda: The Musical.

LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 12: Stephen Graham and Hannah Walters attend the "Adolescence" Special Screening at BAFTA on March 12, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Jeff Spicer/Getty Images)
The husband and wife duo co-founded Matriarch Productions – the production company behind their Emmy winning show Adolescence. (Getty)

In 2020, Graham and Walters co-founded Matriarch Productions “with the aim of providing a much-needed platform for underrepresented voices and stories in the UK”. 

The production company has produced Boiling Point, A Thousand Blows and most-recently the Emmy-winning TV show Adolescence.

On stage as he accepted the Emmy for the groundbreaking drama which unpacks themes of misogyny and toxic masculinity, Graham expressed his gratitude to those closest to him before making a heartfelt tribute to the woman who has been his lifelong collaborator in career, parenting and love.

Stephen Graham, Hannah Walters at the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards Governors Ball on September 14, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images)
Graham credited his wife as his “rock” as he accepted his award at the Emmy Award ceremony. (Variety via Getty Images)

“[Thank you] to my kids Grace and Alfie and my adorable wife who I love with every ounce of my being,” he said. 

“You are my rock, you are my world, you are my soulmate and you know and I know without you I would be dead,” he continued. 

“So from the bottom of my heart I love you with everything I have.”

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