BBC Breakfast’s Carol Kirkwood, famed for her weather forecasts, has managed to keep her personal life largely under wraps despite the occasional revealing insight. Known for her professionalism on screen, Carol’s journey off-camera has been anything but ordinary. Over the years, she has weathered personal storms—from experiencing what she described as a “devastating” heartbreak to eventually finding new love that left her “couldn’t be happier”.
Carol’s personal evolution has been marked by significant highs and lows. In 1990, at the age of 28, she not only embarked on her illustrious BBC career but also married Northern Irish professional cricketer Jimmy Kirkwood. Their union, which lasted until their separation in 2008, was a partnership built on shared responsibilities and clearly defined roles, reports Bristol Live.
However, when the couple eventually split, Carol faced an overwhelming period of change. Speaking on Kaye Adams’ How To Be 60 podcast, she recalled the profound impact of that period, stating, “Probably the year I got divorced. I didn’t expect that to happen, and it was shocking. It was pretty devastating at the time, but it led to better things after that.” She went on to add, “I think that was probably the hardest year, that or when my dad died.”
The dissolution of her marriage forced Carol to reinvent her daily life. Accustomed to a structured partnership where Jimmy managed many of the household tasks, she had to quickly adapt to new responsibilities. Reflecting on this transition, she noted, “It was a transition between being married and being divorced and suddenly being on your own.” Handling everything from banking to paperwork for the first time, she admitted, “All of that was new to me at the ripe old age in my 40s. You were a wee bit lost, but you get on with it.”
Fortunately, the tide turned for Carol. Her personal life took a brighter turn when she met her current partner, Steve Randall, at an event with TV personality Steph McGovern. Their relationship blossomed, leading to an engagement in 2022 and a quietly celebrated wedding at the end of 2023. Addressing speculations on BBC Breakfast, she clarified, “It wasn’t a secret,” explaining that the intimate Buckinghamshire ceremony was a deliberate choice.
Expressing her marital bliss on air, Carol told co-host Jon Kay, “Jon, I cannot tell you how fabulous it’s been! You shouldn’t really be talking like this about your own wedding, but it was blissful! It was romantic, it was absolutely perfect.” She added further, “I would not change a thing about the day. It was very small as well and intimate, so you didn’t have to worry that Auntie Nelly didn’t have a glass of sherry in her hand! It was brilliant.”
Away from the weather map, Carol has unveiled another facet of her creative talent. Appearing on The One Show, she discussed her passion for writing romance novels. Chatting with Alex Scott about her latest work—which she described as featuring “romance, betrayal, murder, and scandal,” and being “darker”—she confessed, “It’s still a romance, in essence, and it’s still got twists and turns and jeopardy and stuff like that in it. But I just wanted just to try something a little bit different.”
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