Daniel Mays, the acclaimed actor known for roles in Line of Duty, A Thousand Blows, and Mrs Biggs, returns to television in ITV's gripping new series Believe Me, portraying sex attacker John Worboys. While his on-screen roles often captivate audiences, his personal life with his rarely-seen wife, Louise Burton, offers a compelling story of love, challenges, and resilience.
A Match Made by Stephen Graham
Daniel and Louise first crossed paths on a television set in the 2000s, where Louise worked as a makeup artist. Their romance was kindled by a famous mutual friend: actor Stephen Graham. Speaking on This Morning in 2020, Graham recalled, "We worked together on a show about 15 years ago called Top Buzzer, and Danny really had the hots for Lou, who was our head of makeup. She's a little bit older than Danny ... so I went, 'Go ahead, you'll be aright.' Anyway, so he asked her out after I'd sweetened her up, and she said no."
Fortunately, persistence paid off. Louise later laughed, explaining, "He was a little bit too young ... how did he win me round? His persuasiveness!"
A Pregnancy Shock
After just five months of dating, Louise revealed she was pregnant. Daniel described the moment as "a bolt from the blue." In a 2024 interview with The Times, he recalled, "It was like a scene from a movie when she told me: she opened her handbag and put the pregnancy test on the coffee table. I was, like, 'F***! What do you mean?' I went missing for a week after that, I was in freefall. My career was getting traction, I'd just got my first lead role in a BBC show called Funland and this happened. I couldn't collate it in my head. I'd never wanted to be one of those actors that just had a career, but at 25 you want to make your mark in the profession that you've chosen. It was scary but we went for it."
Their son Mylo was born in 2005 and is now studying film-making. The couple later welcomed a daughter, Dixie, in 2012.
A Wedding After Heartbreak
After more than a decade together, Daniel and Louise married in 2018. Daniel announced on X (formerly Twitter): "Got hitched on Saturday! With deep love and thanks to everyone who came to celebrate our magical day. Memories to last a lifetime." The accompanying photo showed Daniel in a navy three-piece suit, posing with his bride as guests showered them in confetti.
The timing of the wedding was influenced by a devastating family loss. Daniel told The Guardian in 2020: "Lou lost her parents in quick succession and it was a terrible blow for her. She was just rudderless. And it seemed right to do the wedding then, step up. We had an amazing day."
A Horrific Accident During Lockdown
In 2020, Daniel revealed that Louise suffered a "horrific" accident. Speaking to the Daily Express, he explained that the early days of lockdown were thrown into chaos after his wife tripped down a grass bank and broke her leg. "It was pretty tricky because my poor wife literally broke her leg on Mother's Day which was the Sunday before all of the schools shut down. She literally had this horrific freak accident where she fell down a grass bank while we were out walking. Her foot got caught and she was very nervous about social distancing." The couple spent three hours in A&E following the accident.
Believe Me premieres on Sunday, May 10, at 9pm on ITV.
