Beyond Paradise star Felicity Montagu’s secret connection: Meet her famous daughter—and their surprising collaboration!
Felicity Montagu is well known for playing the role of beloved Margo Martins (Image: BBC)
Beyond Paradise star Felicity Montagu is well known for playing the role of beloved Margo Martins in the popular BBC drama. The star character takes on the crucial role in supporting DI Humphrey Goodman at Shipton Abbott’s police station. She has quickly become a fan favourite for her direct and tough exterior and troubled personal life. When it comes to Felicity’s personal life, fans may not know that she is not the only one in her family to take on an acting career as her daughter Olivia has decided to follow in her footsteps.
They have previously worked together as they joined creative forces for the BBC Radio 4 series Guilt Trip in 2016, taking on the roles of mother and daughter. The show was inspired by an actual holiday they experienced together in Fuerteventura, which is part of the Canary Islands.
The actress has a famous daughter and they have worked together before (Image: BBC)
Speaking about their unique bond, Felicity revealed: “We’ve always had a rough and tumble relationship. Forever catching up with each other because I was grieving when I gave birth and then I got very ill and was in hospital for weeks.”
The actress also openly spoke about the challenging period surrounding Olivia’s birth, which happened just three months after losing her mother to cancer.
Surprisingly, before she rose to fame, Gina Ford, known for her expertise in childcare, served as Olivia’s nurse during infancy.
Felicity recalled: “She was whipped away and taken home because I couldn’t breastfeed her. It was a strange beginning.” This was a stark difference from her own comfortable upbringing, in which her parents supported her acting ambitions despite their concerns.
Felicity has two children, Olivia and Luke, with her former husband, TV and radio producer Alan Nixon, whom she wed in 1984.
Margo Martins quickly become a fan favourite (Image: BBC)
Though they separated in 2006, she acknowledged: “We’re still a team,” and explained that her children “make me laugh a lot”.
Felicity comes from a large family with five siblings and has an impressive lineage; her father, Lieutenant-Colonel John Drogo Montagu, is a descendant of the respected Royal Navy officer Admiral George Montagu.
And the historical connections don’t end there. Admiral George was a direct descendant of James Montagu, who traced his lineage back to Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester.
Henry Montagu was a judge, politician, and peer infamous for sentencing Sir Walter Raleigh to death. James also served as an MP for Huntingdon, and sat in the House of Commons alongside Oliver Cromwell in 1628.
Beyond Paradise airs Friday on BBC One at 8pm
